Stipe Miocic has always been proud of his work as a firefighter, and he won’t let a few Jon Jones wisecracks throw him off.
Jones made a triumphant return to competition at UFC 285, quickly submitting Ciryl Gane to capture a vacant heavyweight title. During fight week, Miocic and UFC President Dana White both said Miocic — the record-holder for the most succesful consecutive UFC heavyweight title defenses (3) — would challenge the winner of this past Saturday’s main event.
A matchup between Jones & Miocic has now been set. Jones joked in his post-fight press conference that Miocic might want to take a break from firefighting right now to prepare for the fight.
Miocic responded to the jab on The MMA Hour on Monday.
“I think everyone tries to say that and they realize they’re in a world of hurt when it’s not happening the way they want,” Miocic said. He didn’t seem to know that I have been a fireman all my time in the UFC. But whatever, that’s none of my business. I don’t really care.”
Miocic currently works as a part-time firefighter paramedic in his home state of Ohio, something he’s done the majority of his 12-year UFC run. The job hasn’t appeared to hinder his fighting career in any significant way, as he’s compiled a 14-4 UFC record with four successful heavyweight title defenses across two reigns.
Though Miocic expects to be fighting for the title again at UFC 290 on July 8 to cap off the UFC’s International Fight Week in Las Vegas, he wasn’t sure if it would be against Jones or Gane.
“I thought I was going with Ciryl in beginning of the week, but the more I talked about it with other people, the more I thought about it, I thought it was more even,” Miocic said. “I just said if Ciryl keeps it on the feet, he picks him apart, him all day. It’s still going to be a great fight, but I thought if Jon used his wrestling it’s going to be a long night for Ciryl. It was something I wasn’t ready for. It was going to take five rounds of big warfare, which I didn’t expect. Jon .”
Bravo!
The July 8 date isn’t set in stone (post-fight, White said the date is in play but remains unconfirmed), but Miocic is gearing himself up for another shot at the belt, whether it happens in the summer or later this year. His next fight will be his first since March 2021, when he dropped the title to Francis Ngannou at UFC 260.
Despite his long absence, Miocic feels confident that Jones will be his first real loss.
” I’m going win, there’s not any question,” Miocic stated. “There’s no question.”
“I know that [he’s never lost,]” Miocic added. It’s a bummer that he will lose. He’s going [to have] a big ‘one.’ I’m not going to imagine it, it’s going to happen.”
Source: https://www.mmafighting.com/2023/3/6/23627752/stipe-miocic-responds-to-jon-jones-firefighter-jab-everyone-talks-until-theyre-in-a-world-of-hurt?rand=96749
