Stipe Miocic is a harder matchup for Jon Jones than Ciryl Gane - Coach Henry Cejudo explains why
Jon Jones did not wait long to call out his next opponent as the newly-crowned heavyweight champion. Moments after submitting Ciryl Gane with a guillotine choke in the UFC 285 main event, Jones called out former heavyweight champion and consensus all-time great, Stipe Miocic.
Miocic was in attendance at the T-Mobile Arena and experienced firsthand what a heavier Jones is capable of after his years of light heavyweight domination. 'Bones' also respectfully termed Miocic as the greatest heavyweight in his call-out and expressed his desire to take his place.
Former bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo, who trained extensively with Jones prior to his return to action, weighed in on a potential fight between Miocic and Jones.
In a video uploaded to his YouTube channel, Cejudo touched upon Miocic's strength that would make the fight play out differently to the Gane fight.
“The only thing that I could say is I just don’t think Stipe would be able to go three rounds with Jon. I do believe Stipe’s biggest gift is his threshold, his gas tank. How he had the ability to, you know, to weather the storm with a guy like Daniel Cormier and beat him.
"You know, was hurt in the beginning, ends up coming back like Stipe gets better as the fight goes on. Stipe Miocic, the former heavyweight champion of the world, the greatest gift that he has is his threshold and endurance but against a guy like Jon Jones, you need all that and some.”
Cejudo also gave a confident prediction for the fight:
“Jones. I think he finishes him. This time in a different fashion… I’m going Jon Jones, no more than three [rounds].”
Check out Cejudo's full comments on YouTube:
Stipe Miocic reacts to Jon Jones' win, talks about facing him in July
Stipe Miocic has had a similar absence from the sport as Jon Jones, with his last appearance against Francis Ngannou, wherein he lost his heavyweight championship in 2021.
He is now primed to return to challenge Jones for the heavyweight title after being called out by the new champion.
Miocic reacted to Jones' win and spoke about his learnings from the fight as he watched on from the sidelines. In an interview with ESPN MMA's Brett Okamoto, the 40-year-old said:
“Honestly, I thought it was going to a decision. I didn’t know how Jon was, he took three years off but hats off to him. You see some things, I’ll keep them to myself but I definitely see some things [I can use]. It’s a fight, he won, good for him. Hats off, but unfortunately he’s got to fight me in July.”
Miocic also spoke about being at ease with his current weight and expressed confidence in his own abilities.
Check out his interview below: