What made Jon Jones' third-round finish of Stipe Miocic in their heavyweight title fight Saturday in the main event of UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden so remarkable wasn’t simply his dominance from the start to the very violent finish.
It's more than just that Jones stopped Miocic, who had been universally acclaimed as the UFC's greatest heavyweight going into the bout. Rather, what was so impressive was Jones did it by beating Miocic at his own game.
Miocic is a striker with terrific hands who had KO wins over Daniel Cormier, Junior dos Santos, Alistair Overeem and Fabricio Werdum, among others. But Jones won the fight with a vicious and perfectly placed spinning back kick to the ribcage after having dominated the stand-up all night.
Miocic was out of his element against Jones, who was way quicker and who all night landed the crisper, harder and more damaging shots. This was not a guy who needed to take an opponent down and hold him on the ground for 25 minutes to win.
This instead was a versatile and dangerous offensive machine who kicked, punched, kneed, elbowed, wrestled and grappled in a performance that establishes beyond any reasonable doubt that he's the greatest mixed martial arts fighter in the world.
Jones said his talent is a gift from above.
"I cannot take credit for a gift like this, man," he said in the Octagon after the finish came at 4:29 of the third. "I really owe it all to Him."
What Jones has is unquestionably a gift of some sort. He's quick and he's strong, but he has a high fighter IQ, which comes from years of work in the gym and poring over hours of video. He has terrific timing and he knows how to use his frame to his advantage.
He's got great distance control and excels in all areas of the game. On Saturday, he was not only the better striker, but he was the better wrestler, the better grappler and the stronger, smarter and sharper fighter.
Miocic certainly didn't look like a prime version of himself. We'll never know if it was his advanced age for a fighter of 42, his three-plus years out of the cage or just if Jones was that good. I suspect it's some of all, with the biggest contributing factor being Jones' enormous talents.
"I expected everything," Miocic said of Jones' tactics. "I just didn't do what I was supposed to do."
That, of course, was because Jones didn't allow it. He cracked Miocic early and followed with a takedown. He left him there for the rest of the first round and came close to finishing it. He was blasting Miocic with elbows in vintage Jon Jones fashion and referee Herb Dean was watching closely.
It was over at that point for all intents and purposes. Miocic wobbled back to his corner and never had his sea legs under him again. The end came at 4:29 of the third and was set up by some nice work by Jones with his hands. He landed a snapping jab, and it should be noted that Jones' jab was a more significant weapon Saturday than it's been in the past. He seemed to pause for a second to admire its impact before getting back to work.
Right after, he followed with a right cross and the impact reverberated through the ringside area as Miocic wobbled unsteadily and backed toward the cage. Jones then spun and hit Miocic with a spinning back kick, his left heel digging into Miocic's body just below his ribs.
UFC president Dana White was blown away by Jones' performance, though he'd been raving about him, sometimes in over-the-top manner, for months.
"Is everybody going to admit now that he's the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world?" White asked at the post-fight news conference with a sly grin.
White pointed out that Miocic was in great shape but that Jones' arsenal was simply too much. There was no defending against him because a fighter can't defend against everything and Jones has mega-offensive weapons he can turn to in every position.
"The kicks started right from the jump," White said. "He hurt him with the first kick. This guy's fight IQ is off the charts. ... And let me tell you, this thing had upset written all over it, too. I mean, Stipe heard all the talk about Jon Jones and Stipe seemed pissed, and he was focused. And, you know, he came here to win.
"He looked good. He was physically in great shape. The list goes on and on and Jon literally picked him apart."
While much of the pre-fight discussion focused on a potential matchup with Tom Aspinall, Jones made it clear post-fight that he was willing to consider that challenge. Jones had said in an interview with me before the bout that he felt Aspinall was unaccomplished and he'd prefer a bout with light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira.
White insisted he would not allow Jones to fight Pereira without facing Aspinall first, and after the fight, Jones opened the door to a bout with Aspinall.
"We have some negotiating to do, and if everything goes right, maybe we'll give you guys what you want to see," Jones said, teasingly, in reference to Aspinall.
Fans erupted in outrage after Jones' interview with me and referred to him as a duck.
After seeing what Jones did Saturday, though, there may be plenty more ducks showing up in the UFC.
After all, who in their right mind would ever want to fight that guy?
Jones burst onto the scene at UFC 87 in 2008 and by UFC 128 in 2011 mugged Mauricio "Shogun" Rua to win the light heavyweight title. He was, at 23, the youngest champion in UFC history, a mark he still holds.
He looks now like he could become the oldest champion in history because after seeing that, who in their right minds would pick anyone to beat him?
He's a special fighter and anyone who doubts him simply doesn't understand what they're watching.
Complete UFC 309 results
- Jon Jones TKO3 Stipe Miocic, 4:29, to retain heavyweight championship
- Charles Oliveira W5 Michael Chandler, 49-46 2x, 49-45
- Bo Nickal W3 Paul Craig, 30-27 x 3
- Viviane Araujo W3 Karine Silva, 29-28 x 3
- Mauricio Ruffy W3 James Llontop, 29-28 x 3
- Marcus McGhee W3 Jonathan Martinez, 29-28 x 3
- Jim Miller SUB1 Damon Jackson, guillotine choke, 2:44
- David Onama W3 Roberto Romero, 30-27 x 3
- Marcin Tybura TKO2 Jhonata Diniz, 5:00
- Ramiz Brahimaj TKO1 Mickey Gall, 2:55
- Oban Elliott TKO3 Bassil Hafez, 0:40
- Eduarda Moura W3 Veronica Hardy, 30-27, 29-28 x 2
Brad Penner/Imagn Images
Referee Herb Dean stops the bout as Jon Jones walks away after beating Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 to retain the heavyweight title.