Jon Jones knocks out Stipe Miocic to retain heavyweight title to cement MMA GOAT status at UFC 309

Jon Jones has retained the UFC heavyweight title after brutally dismantling Stipe Miocic over three violent rounds, celebrating the victory with the ‘Trump Dance’.

INGLEWOOD, CA - DECEMBER 29: Jon Jones celebrates his KO victory over Alexander Gustafsson of Sweden in their light heavyweight bout during the UFC 232 event inside The Forum on December 29, 2018 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Flanked by an exclusive selection of his inner circle, the President Elect of the United States walked into Madison Square Garden to a song called ‘American Badass’, and nearly blew the roof off the most famous arena in the world.

Donald Trump and his collection of heavies and hangers-on then sat cageside as a man with a machine gun tattooed on his face was beaten bloody in the first fight of the UFC 309 pay-per-view.

And somehow, it wasn’t the strangest thing to happen in combat sport this weekend.

That award goes to the sad spectacle 24 hours earlier, when 58-year-old Mike Tyson landed just 18 punches in a depressing defeat to 27-year-old YouTuber Jake Paul.

Besides, Trump is a regular at UFC events these days, with his Madison Square Garden outing this weekend feeling exactly like a campaign rally.

Jon Jones plants a face palm on Stipe Miocic. Picture: Sarah Stier/Getty Images

The roar Trump received when he first appeared on the big screen was louder than any of the 24 fighters on the card attracted.

At times it was hard to determine which was the sideshow and which was the spectacle.

In the Octagon, Jon Jones confirmed his legacy as the greatest MMA fighter of all time with a spectacular third round knockout of Stipe Miocic in the main event.

Jones dominated every minute of the heavyweight title fight, before sending Miocic crumpling to the mat with a spinning back kick. Referee Herb Dean stopped it seconds later as ‘Bones’ went for the finish.

Jones capped off the wild night by giving his UFC belt to Trump, who had the best seat in the house.

“I want to say a big thank you to President Donald Trump for being here tonight,” he said, before busting out some of Trump’s customary dance moves in the cage.

For all the mayhem and patriotic chanting surrounding Trump’s appearance, there was a touching moment as Jones exited the arena. The world champion embraced a young fan, Ke’air Christie, who has recently been diagnosed with cancer.

Christie attended UFC 309 as a guest of Jones and Dana White, and was emotional when speaking to this masthead moments after Jones’ touching gesture.

Jon Jones celebrates his title victory. Picture: Sarah Stier/Getty Images

“That was great, that was great,” he said.

In the co-main event, Michael Chandler nearly pulled off a comeback of Trump-like proportions against Charles Oliviera.

The American lightweight had been dropped and nearly submitted numerous times in the first four rounds, but managed to drop Oliviera early in the fifth.

Oliviera was nearly knocked out when referee Keith Peterson allowed Chandler to land multiple punches to the back of the Brazilian’s head, in a terrible display of refereeing.

Originally published as Jon Jones knocks out Stipe Miocic to retain heavyweight title to cement MMA GOAT status at UFC 309