NEW YORK – Jon Jones’ attitude towards Stipe Miocic completely changed during UFC 309 fight week, and with more than 48 hours until the fight, it’s clear things are getting personal.
Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) returned from more than 20 months off on Saturday to face former two-time champion Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-1 UFC) for the heavyweight title for the first time. Compete against. 4 UFC) Main Event at Madison Square Garden (ESPN+ Pay-Per-View, ESPNews, ESPN+)
After initially showing respect for Miocic in the months leading up to this week, reigning champion Jones said he became enraged when Miocic called him a “bitch” during a fight. “Good luck, bitch,” were his exact words. UFC 309 “Countdown” show. Jones also said Miocic was a bad role model for his children given his past personal failings, but he now claims Jones’ attitude has changed.
“Everyone loves first responders and I really respect the men and women of the military and law enforcement, so I tried to have the utmost respect for him,” Jones told MMA Junkie. told other reporters. UFC 309 press conference. “There were two scenarios so far. In the first scenario, he said, ‘My kids will never look at me like an asshole.’ It was a direct attack on me and my family and my relationship with my children. The second attack was him calling me “shit”. So respect is out the window a little bit, but we’ll find out on Saturday. ”
When asked candidly how things have changed, Jones replied, “It’s very personal to me, yeah.”
Miocic appeared stunned by Jones’ comments. “Go for it, son of a bitch,” he reportedly told Jones, who insisted he would beat him in front of a capacity crowd in New York and in front of the world. Miocic doesn’t know how that made things so personal, but it doesn’t matter to him either.
“I don’t even remember saying, ‘The kids aren’t going to look at me in a bad way,'” Miocic said. “It wasn’t a direct thing for him. And when I said, ‘Go for it, bitch,’ he almost called me out and said, ‘I’m going to beat my ass in front of an entire arena of people.’ he said. So, I apologize for defending myself. I apologize. …
“I think every fight is personal, no matter what it is. You’re fighting another guy in the Octagon. It’s always personal.”
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