Although not officially announced, Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic are expected to fight in the main event of UFC 309 in Madison Square Garden, New York. Expectations are that ‘Bones’ will easily defeat the former two-time heavyweight champion. However, Randy Couture, the oldest champion in UFC history, does not think that the outcome of the bout is a given. After all, Couture became a two-time light heavyweight champion at 40 and a three-time heavyweight champion at 43.
“Stipe’s I think an amazing competitor, and that’s going to be one hell of a fight. He’s got good enough wrestling to make Jon stand with him, and He’s a little bit taller and longer than Jon, which makes it interesting. Usually, Jon has the advantage with that reach and he’s able to use his wrestling very effectively to keep guys where he wants them. I think he’s gonna have a bigger problem doing that with Stipe,” Couture told Inside Fighting’s Mike Owens on YouTube.
“Everybody’s counting Stipe out because of his age. I’m not gonna fall for that crap. That was the MO with me the entire time in my career, so you cannot count out the old guys. They’re smart, they’re going to figure it out, and that’s Stipe to a tee,” ‘The Natural’ added, revealing he had faced similar doubts from the MMA community as a plus 40 MMA fighter.
The heavyweight division has a longer expiry date. Heavyweight fighters in boxing and MMA often compete at the highest level into their early 40s. Nonetheless, Couture is skeptical of the chances of Alex Pereira and Tom Aspinall against Jon Jones.
Couture: Miocic more Dangerous for Jones Than Aspinall or Pereira
For Couture, Stipe Miocic’s experience poses a bigger threat to Jon Jones compared to Tom Aspinall, the interim heavyweight champion, and Alex Pereira, the light heavyweight champion. However, he didn’t dismiss their chances against the arguable GOAT of MMA.
“Aspinall has that raw physical ability and is still green enough and young enough that he’s going to be tough for Jon to deal with, especially if Jon waits any longer because he’s getting stronger and stronger each time he goes out. I think the longer Jon waits, the better he’s going to be. He’s going to be in full stride by the time that fight happens, so it’s interesting,” Couture said of Aspinall’s chances.
As for Pereira, the three-time heavyweight champion felt the Brazilian needed to answer some questions before facing Jones. However, he admitted that ‘Poatan’ was an elite contender with all the ability to defeat Jones.
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Also Read: Alex Pereira Agrees to Fight Jon Jones- “To the Belt”
