Jon Jones refused to shake Stipe Miocic’s hand at the UFC 309 pre-fight press conference. The duo, of course, is set to fight for ‘Bones’s ‘undisputed’ heavyweight title this Saturday. The refusal behind this was apparently a comment made by Miocic, where he said about Jones that “at least my kids won’t think I’m an a**hole” after Jones called him one.

Stipe Miocic, known to be one of the sport’s most respectful figures, made this comment that many interpreted as a jab at Jones. Miocic meant it as a lighthearted remark, implying that if Jones thinks Miocic is an “a**hole,” at least Miocic’s own kids don’t feel that way about him.

However, Jones took it differently, interpreting the comment as suggesting that his own kids might see him in a negative light. Given the turbulent history with his family, this misunderstanding fueled tension, leading Jones to reject Miocic’s handshake at their final face-off and issue a stern warning: “Don’t ever mention my kids.”

The fight is personal for Jones and surprisingly even for Miocic. The former champ declared that it was always personal when stepping into the octagon with another man who wanted to hurt him. And that, of course, makes for the most exciting scraps. On the other hand, fans couldn’t get enough of Jones’s refusal to shake Miocic’s hand and took to social media to let their thoughts known.

Fans react to Jon Jones refusing to shake Stipe Miocic’s hand at UFC 309 press conference

Fans, of course, understood what Miocic meant and one of them even took the time to explain the whole kerfuffle to fellow fans in a lengthy post: “Stipe literally just meant I don’t care if Jon calls me an a**hole because my kids don’t think I’m an a**hole and that’s all I care about. And now Jon thinks he meant that as an attack on his kids. Think it says a lot about him if he’s looking that deep into it”

Fans also used sarcasm to great effect. One fan took shots at Jones’ history with his family in a comment, which reads as sincere praise for Jones, if one is not aware of the deep lore about Jones and his family: “Wow Jon is so protective of his kids! I can’t imagine how protective he is for the mother of his kids! ❤️”

Dana White, of course, loves Jones and proclaimed him the GOAT and the pound-for-pound #1 fighter at the UFC 309 pre-fight press conference. The love between the two men, of course, has become something of a meme in recent times, and one fan continued that tradition with a hilarious comment: “Yeah don’t mention his kids, Stipe, him and Dana are trying to grow a beautiful family”

Jones, of course, is not very popular among fans, especially at the moment as he allegedly ducks Tom Aspinall. It was therefore not surprising to see a fan wish Miocic knock out Jones, especially since that fan expects Mike Tyson to be stopped by Jake Paul at their November 15 boxing match: “Stipe knocking out Jones will be the only thing that heals me after seeing Mike get KO’d by Jake the night before”

Even Jones’ own fans found it hard to defend him given his recent conduct and overreaction to Miocic’s comment: “It’s hard to be a Jon fan sometimes”. What do you think about Jon Jones’ refusal to shake Stipe Miocic’s hand? Was he justified or was it blown out of proportion? Tell us in the comment section below!