Trainer Greg Jackson believes it would be a shame for UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones not to fight Stipe Miocic.
Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) defends his title against former champion Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC) in the main event of UFC 309 on November 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Jackson insists Jones has nothing left to prove, but adding a name like Miocic to his CV is what motivates him.
“I think Stipe is absolutely legendary — I mean he’s one of the best heavyweights,” Jackson said on the “Weighing In” radio show. “You could say he’s one of the best heavyweights of all time. So I think that’s the challenge John needs because there’s always going to be guys coming up. There’s always going to be a new phenomenon. There’s always going to be another guy who says: ‘Oh, this guy’s so strong.’ .
“So I think what’s attractive to John about this is that it’s two legends fighting each other. At this point in John’s career, he doesn’t need to fight. He could stop today and be fine. But I think it made him think about the idea of Stipe and how great he is and how great he is.” His strength and the competition against that I think he’s looking for something legacy there in my opinion.
As of now, Jackson believes Miocic will be Jones’ last fight. However, if the fans demand it and Dana White pays him enough money, Jackson believes Jones would be willing to fight Aspinall.
Given that Jones was already booked to face Miocic at UFC 295 before Jones pulled out due to injury, Jackson says it wouldn’t be 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 know we had this fight before any of this drama happened. For me, it would be a terrible move to say to Stipe: ‘Oh, nevermind, we’re not going to fight you after all.’ We’re going to go after this guy. I mean Stipe deserves better than that. “Not only is he a great fighter, he’s a great man.”
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