It’s nearly time for Jon Jones to finally make his return.
Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC), who’s considered the greatest MMA fighter of all time by many, defends the UFC heavyweight title against Stipe Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC) in the main event of UFC 309.
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UFC 309 (pay-per-view, ESPNews/Hulu/FX, ESPN+) takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York.
The last time Jones was seen in action was in March 2023 when he quickly submitted Ciryl Gane to win the vacant UFC heavyweight title.
Jones and Miocic were supposed to fight November of last year, but an injury to Jones pushed the fight back a year.
Check out Jones’ most recent performance in the video above.
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.
Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.
The heavyweight title is on the line Saturday in the UFC 309 main event when Jon Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) puts his belt up for the first time when he takes on former champ Stipe Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC).
Take a look at a chronological history of the UFC’s heavyweight title, which the promotion uses to claim its holder as “the baddest man on the planet.”
Mark Coleman
Mark Coleman
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Date: Feb. 7, 1997 Event: UFC 12 Opponent: Dan Severn Total reign: 170 days Title defenses: None
Maurice Smith
Maurice Smith, UFC 19
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Date: July 27, 1997 Event: UFC 14 Opponent: Mark Coleman Total reign: 147 days Title defenses: Tank Abbott
Randy Couture
Randy Couture, UFC 15
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Date: Dec. 21, 1997 Event: UFC Japan Opponent: Maurice Smith Total reign: N/A Title defenses: None Notes: Couture was stripped of the title in January 1998 and left the promotion in a contract dispute.
Bas Rutten
Bas Rutten
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Date: May 7, 1999 Event: UFC 20 Opponent: Kevin Randleman Total reign: 34 days Title defenses: None Notes: Rutten won the title left vacant by Randy Couture. But he quickly vacated the belt when he dropped to light heavyweight, then retired.
Kevin Randleman
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Date: Nov. 19, 1999 Event: UFC 23 Opponent: Pete Williams Total reign: 364 days Title defenses: Pedro Rizzo
Randy Couture
Randy Couture
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Date: Nov. 17, 2000 Event: UFC 28 Opponent: Kevin Randleman Total reign: 490 days Title defenses: Pedro Rizzo (twice) Notes: Couture returned to the promotion after a contract dispute and recaptured the title he held three years prior. He also went into the history books as the UFC’s first repeat heavyweight champion.
Josh Barnett
Josh Barnett
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Date: March 22, 2002 Event: UFC 36 Opponent: Randy Couture Total reign: 126 days Title defenses: None Notes: Barnett was stripped of the title in July 2002 after he tested positive for steroids.
Ricco Rodriguez
Date: Sept. 27, 2002 Event: UFC 39 Opponent: Randy Couture Total reign: 154 days Title defenses: None Notes: Rodriguez won the belt vacated by Josh Barnett when he was stripped for a positive steroid test.
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Tim Sylvia
Date: Feb. 28, 2003 Event: UFC 41 Opponent: Ricco Rodriguez Total reign: 229 days Title defenses: Gan McGee Notes: Sylvia was stripped of the title in October 2003 after he tested positive for steroids.
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Frank Mir
Frank Mir
Date: June 19, 2004 Event: UFC 48 Opponent: Tim Sylvia Total reign: 419 days Title defenses: None Notes: Mir’s title win is famous because he broke Sylvia’s arm. But Mir was in a motorcycle accident post-title and was on the shelf long enough to have his belt stripped in August 2005.
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Andrei Arlovski (interim, then undisputed)
Andrei Arlovski
Date: Feb. 5, 2005 Event: UFC 51 Opponent: Tim Sylvia Total reign: 246 days Title defenses: Justin Eilers, Paul Buentello Notes: Arlovski beat Sylvia, who previously was stripped for steroids, for an interim belt while Frank Mir was out with injuries from a motorcycle crash. After one defense as interim champ, Arlovski was promoted to undisputed titleholder.
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Tim Sylvia
Tim Sylvia
Date: April 15, 2006 Event: UFC 59 Opponent: Andrei Arlovski Total reign: 322 days Title defenses: Andrei Arlovski, Jeff Monson Notes: Sylvia won the title for a second time when he beat Arlovski in a rematch. He beat him again three months later to run his record to 2-1 in their trilogy.
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Randy Couture
Date: March 3, 2007 Event: UFC 68 Opponent: Tim Sylvia Total reign: 623 days Title defenses: Gabriel Gonzaga Notes: In one of the most dramatic moments in UFC history, Couture started his third reign as champion and became the first fighter in UFC history to win titles in two weight classes.
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Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (interim)
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
Date: Feb. 2, 2008 Event: UFC 81 Opponent: Tim Sylvia Title defenses: None Notes: Nogueira won an interim belt while Randy Couture was in a contract dispute with the UFC.
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Brock Lesnar
Dec 30, 2011; Las Vegas, NV, USA; UFC fighter Brock Lesnar after being defeated by Alistair Overeem (not pictured) during a heavyweight bout at UFC 141 at the MGM Grand Garden event center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Date: Nov. 15, 2008 Event: UFC 91 Opponent: Randy Couture Total reign: 707 days Title defenses: Frank Mir, Shane Carwin Notes: Lesnar at the time became the faster fighter to a UFC title.
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Frank Mir (interim)
Date: Dec. 27, 2008 Event: UFC 92 Opponent: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira Title defenses: None Notes: Mir became interim champ by beating an interim champ. Then he lost a unification fight to Brock Lesmar.
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Shane Carwin (interim)
Shane Carwin
Date: March 27, 2010 Event: UFC 111 Opponent: Frank Mir Title defenses: None Notes: Carwin became interim champ by beating an interim champ. Then he lost a unification fight to Brock Lesmar.
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Cain Velasquez
Dec 29, 2012; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Cain Velasquez during UFC 155 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Date: Oct. 13, 2010 Event: UFC 121 Opponent: Brock Lesnar Total reign: 385 days Title defenses: None Notes: Velasquez lost the belt in his first attempted defense.
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Junior Dos Santos
Mar 9, 2019; Wichita, KS, USA; Junior Dos Santos (blue gloves) defeats Derrick Lewis (red gloves) during UFC Fight Night at InTrust Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kelly Ross-USA TODAY Sports Images
Date: Nov. 12, 2011 Event: UFC on FOX 1 Opponent: Cain Velasquez Total reign: 413 days Title defenses: Frank Mir Notes: JDS needed just 64 seconds to upset Velasquez to win the title.
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Cain Velasquez
May 26, 2012; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Cain Velasquez during his fight against Antonio Silva (not pictured) at the MGM Grand Garden event center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
Date: Dec. 29, 2012 Event: UFC 155 Opponent: Junior Dos Santos Total reign: 896 days Title defenses: Antonio Silva, Junior Dos Santos Notes: Velasquez became a two-time champion and avenged his earlier loss to JDS.
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Fabricio Werdum (interim, then undisputed)
Fabricio Werdum
Date: Nov. 15, 2014 Event: UFC 180 Opponent: Mark Hunt, Cain Velasquez Total reign: 336 days Title defenses: None Notes: Werdum beat Hunt for an interim title while Velasquez was sidelined, then beat Velasquez to unify the belts at UFC 188.
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Stipe Miocic
Stipe Miocic
Date: May 14, 2016 Event: UFC 198 Opponent: Fabricio Werdum Total reign: 784 days Title defenses: Alistair Overeem, Junior Dos Santos, Francis Ngannou Notes: Regarded as the greatest heavyweight of all time by virtue of more successive UFC title defenses than anyone else.
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Daniel Cormier
Jul 7, 2018; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Daniel Cormier (blue gloves) celebrates beating Stipe Miocic (red gloves) during UFC 226 at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
Date: July 7, 2018 Event: UFC 226 Opponent: Stipe Miocic Total reign: 406 days Title defenses: Derrick Lewis Notes: Light heavyweight champ Cormier became the second UFC fighter to hold two titles simultaneously.
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Stipe Miocic
Stipe Miocic
Date: Aug. 17, 2019 Event: UFC 241 Opponent: Daniel Cormier Total reign: 588 days Title defenses: Daniel Cormier Notes: Miocic recaptured the title from Cormier in a rematch, then beat him in a trilogy fight a year later.
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Francis Ngannou
Francis Ngannou
Date: March 27, 2021 Event: UFC 260 Opponent: Stipe Miocic Total reign: 659 days Title defenses: Ciryl Gane Notes: Ngannou became the first fighter from Africa to win a UFC heavyweight title. His win over Gane was a title unification bout. He was stripped of the title in January 2023 after a contract dispute.
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Ciryl Gane (interim)
Ciryl Gane
Date: Aug. 7, 2021 Event: UFC 265 Opponent: Derrick Lewis Title defenses: None Notes: Lost to Francis Ngannou in a title unification bout.
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Jon Jones
Jon Jones
Date: March 4, 2023 Event: UFC 285 Opponent: Ciryl Gane Total reign: Incumbent Title defenses: None Notes: Beat Gane for the title vacated when Ngannou left in a contract dispute.
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Tom Aspinall (interim)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – NOVEMBER 11: Tom Aspinall of England reacts after his knockout victory against Sergei Pavlovich of Russia in the interim UFC heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 295 event at Madison Square Garden on November 11, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
Date: Nov. 11, 2023 Event: UFC 295 Opponent: Sergei Pavlovich Total reign: Incumbent Title defenses: Curtis Blaydes Notes: Won an interim title after Jones went on the shelf with surgery. In rarity, defended interim title against Blaydes.
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Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.
Dave Helman sits down with Ralph Vacchiano to talk about the game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Washington Commanders! Within the conversation, the duo break down what the Eagles might do to contain Jayden Daniels and also discuss Jalen Hurts too!
Mike Tyson and Jake Paul meet in the ring Friday night at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, in a showdown that could be the most-watched fight in boxing history.
The main card of the Tyson vs. Paul event will be televised on Netflix at 8 p.m. ET. It will have three fights before Tyson vs. Paul:
The Tyson vs. Paul main event walkout will likely not happen until 11:30 p.m.-12 a.m. ET due to the length of the previous fights.
Former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson (50-6, 2 NC) hasn’t fought since an exhibition draw with legend Roy Jones Jr. on Nov. 28, 2020. The 58-year-old hasn’t had a professional fight in almost 20 years when he quit at the end of the sixth round against Kevin McBride on June 11, 2005.
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Jake Paul (10-1) is coming off a sixth-round knockout win of BKFC star Mike Perry on July 20, 2024. He has won four fights in a row.
Manchester City were the only team Chelsea failed to beat last season on the way to their fifth WSL title in a row.
Their first encounter last season was a feisty 1-1 draw, with Alex Greenwood and Lauren Hemp both sent off for City, who got their revenge in the reverse fixture with a 1-0 win at Kingsmeadow to end Chelsea’s 22-game unbeaten home run.
“Last season in the two head-to-head games, Manchester City were significantly the better team,” the Guardian’s Tom Garry told BBC Radio 5 Live.
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“Clearly by the end of the season, those fine margins make a massive difference.
“I think City will go into this game with quite a lot of confidence. They know from last year they can be the better side.”
City let a six-point lead slip towards the end of the season as Emma Hayes’ side won the title on goal difference.
But City have a good record against Chelsea, beating them seven times in the WSL. Only Arsenal, with 10 WSL victories over the Blues, have more.
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“Everyone wants to see who can knock Chelsea off their pedestal,” former Manchester City defender Jen Beattie added. “The team in everyone’s head when it comes to that answer is Man City.
“It’s definitely the top-of-the-table clash that everyone wants.”
Anthony Davis scored 11 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter. He picked up his fifth foul with 3:51 remaining in the third quarter, then came back in with 6:48 left and hit a couple of pivotal baskets, including a 3-pointer with 4:51 remaining to put Los Angeles up for good at 111-108.
James was 13 of 22 from the field, hitting 4 of 7 3-pointers.
Jaren Jackson Jr. had 29 points for Memphis, which had a three-game winning streak snapped.
The Lakers trailed 96-91 at the end of three quarters before starting the quarter with a 10-2 run. The lead would change hands three more times before the 3-pointer by Davis, who also had 14 rebounds.
Takeaways
Grizzlies: Memphis had seven players in double figures for the fourth straight game. Marcus Smart returned after missing six games due to ankle injury and had 14 points.
Lakers: Los Angeles is 6-0 at home for the first time since the 2010-11 season.
Key moment
Davis reached 18,000 career points with a layup at the 7:51 mark of the first quarter. He is the 80th player in NBA history to reach that milestone as well as the 12th to also have at least 7,000 rebounds and 1,500 blocks since 1973-74.
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Key stat
The Lakers made a season-high 20 3-pointers. Knecht made all five of his shots from beyond the arc.
Up next
Both teams have NBA Cup games on Friday night. The Grizzlies are at Golden State. and the Lakers travel to San Antonio.
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