Tag: UFC 309

Arman Tsarukyan: Michael Chandler is ‘No. 1 easy fight for Charles Oliveira’ at UFC 309

Arman Tsarukyan thinks the UFC lightweight division is trending toward a championship rematch between himself and Charles Oliveira in 2025.

ABU DHABI – [autotag]Arman Tsarukyan[/autotag] thinks the UFC lightweight division is trending toward a championship rematch between himself and [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag] in 2025.

Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) expects to claim the 155-pound belt from Islam Makhachev (26-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) during their expected meeting in January or February of next year. Before that happens, though, Oliveira (34-10 MMA, 22-10 UFC) will have a rematch of his own with [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC) at UFC 309 on Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

There has been no love lost between Tsarukyan and Chandler in recent months. Tsarukyan was one of the harshest critics of Chandler waiting nearly two years for a Conor McGregor fight to materialize, and Chandler has clapped back on multiple occasions.

Chandler claims his fight against Oliveira is a title eliminator and the winner will get whoever emerges with the belt between Tsarukyan and Makhachev. There’s potential for a fun build for a Tsarukyan vs. Chandler fight, but the current top contender just doesn’t see it happening.

“Michael Chandler is going to lose for sure,” Tsarukyan told MMA Junkie. “He’s the No. 1 easy fight for Charles Oliveira. He’s going to choke him out or knock him out. He’s easy money for Oliveira, so I’m so happy for him.”

Tsarukyan said if both he and Oliveira get the job done, they would run it back. Their first meeting took place at UFC 300 in April with Tsarukyan taking a split decision. He thinks the UFC brass would have no problem running it back.

“After the fight Oliveira is going to be the next after me,” Tsarukyan said. “I’m going to fight with Islam and then after that fight he’s for sure going to fight for the title. He has a big name, he was the champion and UFC loves him.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Donn Davis: PFL will have world’s best heavyweight after Saturday, not UFC

In one man’s opinion, talk of the world’s top heavyweight should be focused on Saudi Arabia on Saturday, not New York in November.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – As far as [autotag]Donn Davis[/autotag] is concerned, talk about the world’s top heavyweight should be focused on Saudi Arabia on Saturday, not New York in November.

Put simpler, the promotion’s co-owner thinks the PFL will have the best heavyweight in MMA after Saturday, not the UFC. And further, Davis implied that disputing that claim would take a cross-promotion of some kind with the UFC – an idea CEO [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] essentially never has been keen to.

At PFL: Battle of the Giants (DAZN/ESPN+) at The Mayadeen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, former UFC heavyweight champion [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] (17-3) takes on [autotag]Renan Ferreira[/autotag] (13-3) in a PFL heavyweight superfight title bout. Ngannou has boxed twice since he left the UFC, but hasn’t fought an MMA bout since January 2022 before he left the UFC for the PFL after a contract dispute.

At UFC 309, which takes place Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden, [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] (27-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC) is a massive favorite upwards of 7-1 against former champ [autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag] (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC). Jones won the UFC heavyweight title after Ngannou vacated it.

And naturally, depending on which side is asked, the other side is ducking – either Jones or Ngannou.

“Our focus is on this Saturday,” Davis said after a Thursday news conference in Saudi Arabia for the pay-per-view. “This is the biggest fight in MMA in heavyweight this year. Francis, when he left the UFC, he was the pound-for-pound No. 1 and the heavyweight champion. And then Ferreira is the biggest rising star … This is the fight everybody wants to see. Whoever comes out of this fight is the No. 1 in the world. Whoever wants to claim the No. 1 spot goes through the winner of this fight, not through the UFC – this fight. Whoever wants to claim that position better be calling us after Saturday, not calling them.”

Jones has suggested his fight with Miocic might be his swan song. Ngannou is in his late 30s, as well. Absent cross-promotion, and reasonably soon, it seems like a Jones-Ngannou fight is a longshot at best.

But Davis implied it could happen if White wanted it to.

“We’ve said at the PFL we want to give the fans what they want, and that’s the best fights in the world,” Davis said. “Francis Ngannou? He said he’ll take on all comers. I think Jon Jones wants to cement his legacy. There’s only one obstacle to that fight, and we know who that is.”

After the UFC 309 heavyweight title fight between Jones and Miocic, the UFC has interim champ [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] waiting in the wings, as well.

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For more on the cards, visit MMA Junkie’s event hubs for PFL: Battle of the Giants and UFC 309.

Bo Nickal maps out five-fight plan to UFC title: ‘This is a good step up with Paul Craig’

Bo Nickal reiterates he is in no rush to climb to the top.

[autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag] reiterates he is in no rush to climb to the top.

Nickal (6-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) faces his most notable name to date when he takes on [autotag]Paul Craig[/autotag] (17-8-1 MMA, 9-8-1 UFC) in a middleweight bout at UFC 309 Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden.

Although Nickal is a highly touted prospect, he isn’t looking to be fast tracked. He has an idea of how his path to the UFC title will look like.

“This is a good step up with Paul Craig,” Nickal said on his YouTube channel. “So, take care of business and then I want to (fight) two more guys that are unranked. Then fight a ranked guy.

“So at that point, I’ll be 7-0, 8-0, 9-0, fight a ranked guy, 10-0. 11-0, probably fight a top-five guy, and then fight for the belt around 12-0. That’s what I’m planning on right now. We’ll see, but definitely zoom focused on this next fight.”

If he can get through Craig, Nickal hopes to draw bigger names moving forward.

“I’m just going to smash this guy, and then I want to get exciting fights now,” Nickal said. “I feel like I’ve fought enough guys that have kind of not really been very dangerous to me. I haven’t even been hit really in a real fight yet.

“So I want to start fighting better guys for sure. Once I get a ranked fight, I think I’m only going to have to fight two or three before the belt. At that point, it’s like straight to it.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Cain Velasquez speculates how prime version of him would have fared vs. Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall

Cain Velasquez would have liked his chances vs. both Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall.

[autotag]Cain Velasquez[/autotag] would have liked his chances vs. both [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] and [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag].

Velasquez was widely regarded as the best heavyweight when he won the UFC title twice and tore through the majority of the top contenders. However, injuries helped put a close to Velasquez’s MMA career, and many wondered what might have been if he was able to remain healthy. He retired in late 2019.

Velasquez (14-3 MMA, 12-3 UFC) was asked how a prime version of himself would have matched up against heavyweight champion Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC), and Velasquez admits even the best version of him wouldn’t have ran through someone like “Bones.”

“Jon Jones, prime Cain – OK, that would be a tough fight, man. Always, that would’ve been tough,” Velasquez said on the “Basement Talk” podcast. “You know, with that dude, he is (the boogeyman). But I think that would’ve been the best matchup because I think I would’ve had something for him. I could go there where he would’ve wanted to go.”

Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) is the interim heavyweight champion, and his lone octagon loss came in a 15-second TKO loss due to injury against Curtis Blaydes. He was able to avenge that loss in his most recent outing when he stopped Blaydes by first-round TKO to retain his interim title at UFC 304 in July.

Although Aspinall’s grappling is highly touted, Velasquez is confident he would have been able to get him to the ground.

“Aspinall, as well, especially with the wrestling, I just know when I get onto somebody’s legs I’m taking him down,” Velasquez said. “(He’s) very dangerous with his hands, has a lot of power. Wat he does, he kind of lunges forward and punches – takes a big step and lunges forward, closes that distance really well. But when somebody is wrestling, you’re going to be coming into my takedowns.”

Jones defends his title vs. former champion Stipe Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC) in the UFC 309 main event Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Video: Jon Jones almost accidentally knocks out Gable Steveson with flying knee in training

Jon Jones is looking sharp and ready to fend off Stipe Miocic’s wrestling at UFC 309 – maybe a little too sharp.

[autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] is looking sharp and ready to fend off Stipe Miocic’s wrestling at UFC 309.

Maybe even a little too sharp, as Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) almost took Olympic gold medalist wrestler [autotag]Gable Steveson[/autotag]’s head off with a flying knee while defending a takedown during practice.

Steveson has gone over to Jackson Wink MMA in Albuquerque, N.M., to help Jones prepare for his upcoming heavyweight title defense against former champ Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC) in the UFC 309 main event Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Take a look at the moment Jones might’ve knocked out Steveson had he not held up just in time:

Check out more videos and photos of the pair training together below.

https://www.instagram.com/jonnybones/p/DA2fBJnRRP8/?hl=en&img_index=1

https://www.instagram.com/gablesteveson/p/DA2emFJR3On/?hl=en

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

UFC 309 adds Charlie Campbell vs. Mauricio Ruffy

Mauricio Ruffy’s UFC debut had some fans speculating if he’ll be “the Brazilian Conor McGregor.”

A lightweight banger is set for New York.

[autotag]Charlie Campbell[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Mauricio Ruffy[/autotag] has been added to UFC 309, the Nov. 16 event at Madison Square Garden.

Two people with knowledge of the matchup recently informed MMA Junkie of the booking but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. The bout was first reported Monday by Ag.Fight.

Campbell (9-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC) steps into a slot on the promotion’s matchmaking schedule opposite Ruffy (10-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) that’s been vacant for a while.

The promotion has sought to book Ruffy since UFC 303 in June, but has struggled to find him a willing opponent. Ruffy was listed on the fight card graphic for the initial UFC 307 announcement but did not end up competing on the Oct. 5 card.

There’s much hype surrounding The Fighting Nerds‘ Ruffy, who teed up an electric promotional debut when he pummeled Jamie Mullarkey at UFC 301 in May. The win was his fifth in a row. Given his flashy style and 100 percent TKO rate in wins, Ruffy has drawn comparisons by many fans to Conor McGregor.

New York’s Campbell will fight in his home state as he looks to extend his winning streak to four. In his two UFC appearances to date, Campbell knocked out Alex Reyes and won a unanimous decision over Trevor Peek.

With the addition, the UFC 309 lineup includes:

  • Champion Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic – for heavyweight title
  • Michael Chandler vs. Charles Oliveira
  • Paul Craig vs. Bo Nickal
  • Eryk Anders vs. Chris Weidman
  • Viviane Araujo vs. Karine Silva
  • Nikita Krylov vs. Azamat Murzakanov
  • Charlie Campbell vs. Mauricio Ruffy
  • Veronica Hardy vs. Eduarda Moura
  • Jonathan Martinez vs. Marcus McGhee
  • Ramiz Brahimaj vs. Mickey Gall
  • Bassil Haffez vs. Oban Elliot

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Randy Brown vs. Carlos Prates booked for UFC 309 in New York

It’ll be a battle of two welterweights with 78-inch reaches in the Big Apple at UFC 309.

Two lengthy welterweight strikers with 78-inch reaches have agreed to fight each other at UFC 309 this fall as [autotag]Randy Brown[/autotag] and [autotag]Carlos Prates[/autotag] will face off in a three-round bout Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden.

A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed the booking to MMA Junkie but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. Ag. Fight first reported the news, and Brown confirmed it on his Instagram account.

A New York native, Brown (19-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC) fights at home once again. Since a 3-3 start to his UFC career, Brown has gone 7-1 in his most recent eight. Brown most recently competed in June when he extended his winning streak to three when he defeated Elizeu Zaleski Dos Santos by unanimous decision at UFC 302 in June.

Prates (20-3 MMA, 3-0 UFC) has exploded onto the international scene in 2024. He’s won all three of his fights by performance bonus-earning knockouts, including a violent dismantling of Li Jingliang at UFC 305 in August.

With the addition, the UFC 309 lineup includes:

  • Champion Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic – for heavyweight title
  • Michael Chandler vs. Charles Oliveira
  • Paul Craig vs. Bo Nickal
  • Randy Brown vs. Carlos Prates
  • Eryk Anders vs. Chris Weidman
  • Viviane Araujo vs. Karine Silva
  • Nikita Krylov vs. Azamat Murzakanov
  • Veronica Hardy vs. Eduarda Moura
  • Jonathan Martinez vs. Marcus McGhee
  • Ramiz Brahimaj vs. Mickey Gall
  • Bassil Haffez vs. Oban Elliot

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Jim Miller books 45th octagon fight vs. Damon Jackson at UFC 309

Jim Miller will look to extend his all-time wins record at UFC 309.

[autotag]Jim Miller[/autotag] will look to extend his all-time wins record at UFC 309.

Miller takes on [autotag]Damon Jackson[/autotag] in a lightweight bout on Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York. A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed the booking to MMA Junkie following an initial report from MMA Fighting.

Miller (37-18-1 MMA, 26-17-1 UFC) is coming off a unanimous decision loss to King Green at UFC 300 in April, where he suffered a broken hand and toe in the first round, as well as receiving 23 stitches on his face. Prior to that, Miller scored back-to-back finishes of Jesse Butler and Gabriel Benitez.

Jackson (23-7-1-1 MMA, 6-5-1-1 UFC) will return to lightweight for the first time since 2018. After stringing together a four-fight win streak, the 36-year-old has lost three of his past four, most recently a unanimous decision to Chepe Mariscal at UFC on ESPN 61 in August.

With the addition, the UFC 309 lineup includes:

  • Champion Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic – for heavyweight title
  • Michael Chandler vs. Charles Oliveira
  • Paul Craig vs. Bo Nickal
  • Eryk Anders vs. Chris Weidman
  • Viviane Araujo vs. Karine Silva
  • Nikita Krylov vs. Azamat Murzakanov
  • Veronica Hardy vs. Eduarda Moura
  • Jonathan Martinez vs. Marcus McGhee
  • Ramiz Brahimaj vs. Mickey Gall
  • Damon Jackson vs. Jim Miller

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Greg Jackson: Stipe Miocic ‘deserves better’ than for Jon Jones to simply move on to Tom Aspinall

Coach Greg Jackson thinks it would be dishonorable for UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones not to fight Stipe Miocic.

Coach Greg Jackson thinks it would be dishonorable for UFC heavyweight champion [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] not to fight [autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag].

Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) defends his title vs. former champ Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC) in the UFC 309 main event Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Jackson insists Jones has nothing left to prove, but adding a name like Miocic to his resume is what motivates him.

“I think because Stipe is so legendary – I mean, the guy’s one of the best heavyweights,” Jackson said on the “Weighing In” podcast. “You could argue he’s one of the best heavyweights ever. So I think that’s the challenge that Jon needs because there’s always going to be young guys coming up. There’s always going to be a new phenom. There’s always going to be another guy that’s like, ‘Oh, this guy’s super tough.’

“So I think the attraction for Jon on that is it’s really two legends fighting each other. At this point in Jon’s career, he doesn’t need to fight. He could stop today and be fine. But I think that gets him up, the idea of Stipe and how great he is and how tough he is and to compete against that. I think he’s looking for a legacy thing there in my opinion.”

As of right now, Jackson thinks Miocic will be Jones’ final fight. However, if the fans demand it and Dana White pays him enough money, Jackson thinks Jones would be willing to fight Aspinall.

Considering that Jones was already booked to face Miocic at UFC 295 before Jones withdrew due to injury, Jackson says it wouldn’t have been fair to Miocic if Jones moved on to Aspinall.

“Maybe he will. I don’t know,” Jackson said of the possibility of Jones fighting Aspinall. “I do know that we had this fight locked up before any of that drama all happened. To me, it would be a terrible move to tell Stipe, ‘Oh, never mind, we’re not going to fight you after all. We’re going to go after this guy.’ I mean, Stipe deserves better than that. He’s not only a great fighter, but he’s a great guy, too.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Anthony Smith says Stipe Miocic would fight Tom Aspinall: ‘He couldn’t care less about Jon Jones’

If Jon Jones doesn’t make UFC 309, Anthony Smith thinks Stipe Miocic would fight Tom Aspinall on short notice.

If [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] doesn’t make UFC 309, [autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag] would fight [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] on short notice.

Interim champion Aspinall has been dubbed as the official backup for the heavyweight title fight between champion Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) and Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC), which headlines the Nov. 16 event at Madison Square Garden.

Daniel Cormier doubts either Jones or Miocic would fight Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) if the other withdraws, but Smith disagrees.

“I think (Miocic) will,” Smith said on his “Believe You Me” podcast with Michael Bisping. “Anytime I’ve ever had conversations about this kind of stuff with Stipe – I know that I think in this whole media world and not just you (Bisping) and I, but the media in the general and the UFC and everyone that talks about it, they make it seem like Stipe really gives a sh*t. He doesn’t really give a sh*t. He’s barely a fighter. Like, he doesn’t have the mentality of a fighter unless he’s in there actively fighting. He doesn’t talk about fights, he doesn’t really watch them that much. He trains every single day, but he’s just not immersed in this world at all.

“He wants to beat Jon because everyone else says that Jon is the best. He couldn’t care less about Jon Jones. He just doesn’t. Whether it’s Jon or it’s Tom Aspinall, he’s going to train about the same. It’s not going to really change much. He has that mentality where it’s not about what that guy is going to do and how I’m going to react to it. His whole mindset is flipped. Here’s what I’m going to do and he has to deal with it. That’s how Stipe’s mindset has always been. So, whether it’s Jon or whether it’s Tom, it doesn’t change anything for Stipe.”

Both Jones and Miocic will be returning from long layoffs, with Miocic having not fought since March 2021, and Jones March 2023. Meanwhile, Aspinall has already defended his interim title with a quick TKO of Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304 in July.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.