A 12-fight card at UFC 309 in New York City was headlined by a heavyweight clash between current champion Jon Jones and former champion Stipe Miocic. Jones and Charles Oliveira emerged as big winners, but what do their victories mean for the bigger picture in the sport? Also of note: Did Michael Chandler save a fifth-round fight with Conor McGregor, even in a loss? To set the record straight, Mike Coppinger, Jeff Wagenheim and Brett Okamoto offer their latest insights on a fun night of fighting at Madison Square Garden.

NEW YORK – Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic were set to fight at Madison Square Garden last November before the fight was postponed. After Jones recovered from his surgery to repair a torn pectoral tendon, UFC president Dana White rescheduled the heavyweight championship fight to headline the annual November show at Madison Square Garden.

Jones once again left no doubt that he is the greatest MMA fighter of all time with a third-round TKO of Miocic in the first defense of his UFC heavyweight championship. The 37-year-old bloodied Miocic smashed his right eye and then finished him off with a beautiful spinning back kick to the body.

After his first fight in 20 months, Jones quickly ended any retirement talk and said he would meet with White and UFC Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell to plan his next fight. Jones has floated the idea of ​​a superfight against light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, but White said in the lead-up that he would first have to face cageside interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall.

“Jon is already the best ever,” White told ESPN during a wide-ranging interview on Friday. “I don’t think anyone is debating that. He moved up to heavyweight and fought the No. 1 in the world. Ciryl Gane doesn’t go for that armbar in the third round, he wins that fight against Francis (Ngannou).

“And the fight was so tight. (Jones) buzz saw right through him as he moved up the ranks. He’s destroyed all the greats, the all-time greats, at light heavyweight. … He hasn’t lost a fight in his life; 16 years. I don’t know if anyone will ever do that again.

Jones’s achievement of this exalted status was far from a formality, despite his tremendous athletic gifts. He has been stripped of his championship twice as he faced multiple performance-enhancing drug bans and run-ins with the law.

But now, after a long stint as light heavyweight champion and two impressive victories in heavyweight title fights, Jones is ready to end his career on a high note with Aspinall and perhaps Pereira waiting in the wings next year.

“It’s so hard to stay on top in this game,” White said. “…It’s not like this guy was a fucking square, hardcore athlete. He’s a freak of fucking nature and he’s a dark dude; Jon Jones is one scary mother.

Miocic wasn’t the last to feel the impact of those elbows, punches and kicks. He hasn’t put up much resistance, nor was the oddsmakers expected to, who installed him as a 5-1 underdog. That’s no surprise considering his age (42) and inactivity level (first fight since March 2021, when Ngannou avenged an earlier loss with a KO win to win the heavyweight title). But in his prime, Miocic was among the best.

Now that he’s a full-time firefighter, Miocic is done fighting for good.

“I’m ready,” Miocic said in his post-fight interview. ‘I’ll hang them up. I’m retiring. Thank God.’

“He’s one of the greatest heavyweights ever,” White said. “If you look outside the organization, people are always arguing, Fedor (Emelianenko) and… many others would say him. And you can’t deny that Stipe is one or two of all time.

“Stipe has taken so much time off. Listen, this is brutal, man. Everyone suffers from memory loss very quickly if you don’t stay active, right?’

The heavyweight division that once belonged to Miocic – with wins over Ngannou, Daniel Cormier and Junior dos Santos – is now ruled by Jones. The question is not how much success Jones will have at heavyweight, but how much longer he will be able to do it. — Copper

Miocic’s sunset fights against a familiar final act

Wagenheim: It wouldn’t have surprised anyone if the Octagon at Madison Square Garden was littered with gloves late Saturday night. That’s the traditional post-fight ritual for a fighter who has decided that the just-completed fight is the last fight of his or her career. Several stars were candidates to retire at UFC 309.

As it turns out, only two fighters did, and one was no surprise. Stipe Miocic, the former UFC heavyweight champion, returned from a three-and-a-half-year absence at the age of 42, looking old and slow after a lackluster TKO loss to reigning champion Jon Jones. Afterwards, Miocic said, “I’m done, I’m hanging ’em up, I’m retiring.”

Wise decision. Miocic should never have come back. He is the most accomplished heavyweight in UFC history, with a record of three consecutive title defenses. But if tonight’s performance is what some fans will remember him for, he has done his legacy a disservice. But that’s what older fighters all too often do.

There was some speculation that Jones would also retire, but he said he would keep fighting. He did not say whether he will agree to face interim champion Tom Aspinall, his biggest threat, or whether he will continue to push for a lucrative superfight with light heavyweight title winner Alex Pereira.

Another fighter for whom retirement seemed like a possibility was Chris Weidman, but his fight was canceled after his opponent, Eryk Anders, fell ill hours before their fight. That robbed Weidman of the chance to compete not far from his hometown on Long Island — and possibly get a hero send-off.

The other retirement of the night came immediately after 41-year-old Jim Miller’s pre-match – only it was his opponent, 36-year-old Damon Jackson, who put his gloves in the center cage after Miller submitted him in the first round. It was Miller’s UFC-record 27th win in his UFC-record 45th fight inside the Octagon, and he told the crowd, “There’s still tread on the tape. This was 45. Let’s see if I can get 50.” ” He’s not going anywhere, and that was good to hear. Unlike Miocic, Miller can still create excitement in the Octagon.

If McGregor doesn’t come back now, he really won’t ever come back

Okamoto: To be honest, I’m already very skeptical that Conor McGregor will ever fight again. I don’t see what the point of it would be. He doesn’t appear to be living a lifestyle conducive to a return, and he never seemed fully motivated by a fight against Michael Chandler during the lead-up to a scheduled fight. He certainly doesn’t need the money, and a return against Chandler wouldn’t have a major impact on his legacy, win or lose. Yet I still believe him want to to fight, or at least, he wants to identify as a fighter again, and he likes the attention. I can’t say for sure that he still won’t come back.

Here’s the deal: if McGregor doesn’t come back now, against this opponent, he’s really done for. Game over. Again, I already think it’s a wrap, but the door is open, just a crack. This fight against Charles Oliveira proved once again that Chandler is the perfect opponent for him to return to. You could easily argue that Chandler has become an entertainer first, and a fighter second. Three years ago he came close to winning a title against Oliveira. He lost quite handily on Saturday, and he didn’t seem too sad about it.

Chandler is here to give McGregor the kind of fight he wants. A brawl. He comes with fire and fire, and you can’t help but think of McGregor’s old saying: “Precision beats power, timing beats speed.” Chandler’s stock is high and fans love to see him fight. He will give McGregor the kind of fight he wants and he is beatable. It’s the perfect scenario to return to. If McGregor passes it again, he’ll never come back.