UFC 309 went down last night (Sat., Nov. 16, 2024), with Jon Jones defend his heavyweight title by knockout Stipe Miocic in the third round of their headlining fight at Madison Square Garden in New York City (see it again here). In the co-main event Charles Oliveira secured his second victory Michael Chandler in another entertaining Lightweight affair (highlights).

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Biggest winner: Jon Jones

Is this really a surprise? “Bones” returned after another lengthy layoff to earn his first-ever 265-pound title defense by ending Miocic’s MMA career rather violently in the third round. Although Jones himself said he could have done much better – and he probably could have – it was still a one-sided win for the former light heavyweight champion. Afterwards, Jones revealed that he had no plans to retire anytime soon, which meant there would be a title association against it Tom Aspinall or a mega fight against the current 205 pound king, Alex Pereiraawaits us in 2025.

Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC

Second place: Charles Oliveira

“Do Bronx” put himself back in the thick of championship contention at 155 pounds by putting in a dominant performance against Chandler and securing his second straight win over the former Bellator MMA Lightweight Champion. For the first four rounds. Oliveira had his way with Chandler before running into trouble in the fifth and final round. Ultimately, Oliveira turned his fortunes around in the final frame to end the round in a dominant position and take home the unanimous decision victory. Featuring the current 155-pound champion, Islam Makhachevwhich he may have been defending his belt against Arman Tsarukyan Come 2025, Oliveira will be interested in the outcome because he could be next.

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Biggest Loser: Paul Craig

“Bearjew” Had a Golden Opportunity to End the Hype of UFC’s New Potential Golden Goose Bo Nickaland he came up flat. And it wasn’t because Nickal outsmarted him, like he has done with all his other enemies. Rather, the reason why Craig dropped the ball is because Nickal actually played the striking play for 15 minutes without going for a single takedown all night. That was perfect for Craig to put it all on the line and beat a guy who barely started MMA just over two years ago. Instead, Craig looked like a deer caught in the headlights as he froze and didn’t let his hands fly. To make matters worse, he was tagged by the same left hand all night and made no adjustments to counteract it. It was a mediocre kickboxing match between the two men, which generated several boo birds. To top it all off, Craig’s loss is his third straight, leaving him 1-5 in his last six UFC fights.

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