This year marks the long-awaited return of ‘Bones’, the reigning heavyweight champion, as he steps back into the octagon after a year-long absence filled with setbacks. He will look to defend his title against the legendary heavyweight contender Stipe Miocic, in what is rumored to be Jones’ final fight. With so much on the line, the entire fight world is focused on this thrilling clash. One man who will closely watch the bout is undefeated Chechen phenom Khamzat Chimaev, who has a clear-cut prediction for the highly anticipated matchup between Jones and Miočić at UFC 309, set to take place at Madison Square Garden on November 16.

Khamzat Chimaev, known for his candid opinions, openly expressed his support for Jon Jones in an interview a few weeks ago on the Eye AM Podcast. He stated, “Jon Jones [will win]. I think he will win that fight [against Stipe Miocic].” However, he also acknowledged the inevitable passage of time, adding, “Of course, everyone gets old. When you get older, everyone starts to lose. It can happen to anyone, but I hope he’s finished after the fight. He’s been a legend. Nobody could beat him.”

On November 15, Chimaev once again backed Jon Jones in his upcoming quest for victory—this time, without saying a word, he simply posted a picture of Jones in his Instagram story with just an emoji: “🥇.” That did not skip the eyes of Jon Jones.

In response, Jones reshared the post in his Instagram story with two emojis: “😤👊🏻,” showing mutual support and a shared commitment to their goals. Both fighters have become nightmares for their respective divisions. Although the fight is generating widespread attention, some also believe the fight does more harm to Jones than good. Can you guess why?

The fight that many wanted to witness was a unification bout between Jones and interim heavyweight champ Tom Aspinall. Unfortunately, it seems that the possibility of this is almost nil at the moment. Jones’ coach Brandon Gibson succinctly hinted at that just weeks back.

“I’m also ready to see Jon hang it up, you know. Put the belt up. I’d prefer him to walk away obviously earlier than later. And out of all the fighters, Jon deserves to walk away, like you said, anytime he wants. So I’m always going to support those guys. There’s never any pressure on me like ‘Oh we gotta fight one more time, we gotta fight this next number one contender,” the coach had said, adding that they were approaching the fight “like it’s our last goal, our last rodeo.” Jones himself also almost echoed the same.

“Maybe I’ll leave you with blue balls, but my legacy will be just fine. I’ve done way too much work in this game. There’s people around the world that’s been watching me fight since they can remember. He would have to go on and win like 10 championships at least in order for that to happen. The work I put in, that body of work ain’t getting touched no time soon,” Jones had said in August. But wasn’t the Tom Aspinall fight needed for the very legacy Jones is talking about?

No one is disputing Jon Jones’ greatness. Remember what Dana White had said? “Everybody on the internet’s stupid…Anybody who thinks Jon Jones isn’t the pound-for-pound best fighter in the world should never be discussing fighting ever. Period, end of story,” White had set the record straight. And why not? Look at Jones’ resume.

Jones registered 8 successful title defenses in his first stint as UFC 205-pound champion. The first five came via submission. Then his second run saw him defend his crown three times. Despite that, there are some glaring points that can not be overlooked. Jon Jones moved up to the heavyweight division in 2023. But that was after Francis Ngannou left UFC as a free agent. Interestingly, Dana White had said that Jones had asked for a huge paycheck for the fight. Many saw this as a deliberate attempt to avoid facing Ngannou- not fit for someone of Jones’ caliber.

Bypassing Ngannou, Jones fought Ciryl Gane for the title fight. He won the fight easily in a first-round submission in March 2023. Jones; first title defense was supposed to happen exactly a year back in UFC 295 against Stipe Miocic. At that moment Miocic was on a long break after Ngannou knocked him out in March 2021 to lift the heavyweight title. But it had to be called off since Jones tore a pectoral muscle during training that required surgery.

UFC then booked an interim title fight between Tom Aspinall and Sergei Pavlovich. Aspinall won that easily in a first-round knockout. So many believe that Jon Jones could have claimed himself undisputed had he fought against Aspinall who is surely among the upcoming stars of the division. So Jones’ reluctance to take up a title unification bout does not reflect well on him. Especially, if Jones retires after the fight, this might leave a permanent question on his legacy, according to many. But Jones’ coach is not in agreement with such theories.

“there’s always going to be a next number one contender. There’s never a perfect time to walk out. Somebody will always say, you know, they’ll hold it- ‘But you didn’t fight that guy.’ To me, it doesn’t matter. So whenever Jon’s ready, I’m right there with him,” the coach had said. Interestingly, Tom Aspinall has a very calm but firm stand amid all this.

“I would like to fight Jon Jones for [the undisputed title]. That would be pretty cool. But if it doesn’t happen, I’m not bothered. Like I say, Jon Jones isn’t my focus. My focus is the undisputed heavyweight title. Anything else, to me, is pretty irrelevant at this point,” Aspinall had just said to the New York Post. While so much is going on in the heavyweight division the middleweight category is also heating up.

Khamzat Chimaev, undefeated since his UFC debut and riding an 8-fight win streak, is rapidly closing in on a title shot. Despite having a fearsome reputation inside the Octagon, there is one man who Chimaev thinks is terrifying on a whole different level. So who exactly is this entity that strikes fear into ‘Borz’, at the prospect of facing him?

Who is Khamzat Chimaev’s Biggest UFC Fear?

Khamzat Chimaev, fresh off his career-best victory at the remarkable UFC Abu Dhabi event last month, stunned fans by taking down Robert Whittaker in just one round via rear-naked choke. This ‘jaw-dropping’ win has sent shockwaves through the middleweight division, propelling Chimaev from the 13th to the 3rd spot in the rankings. With just a couple of fights away from challenging for the title, Chimaev has become a nightmare for everyone in the division.

However, Chimaev also recognizes a nightmare of his own in the form of Jon Jones, a longstanding terror in the heavier weight divisions. While speaking on the ‘Triple C Schmo Show’, Chimaev opened up about ‘Bones’, saying, “Jon Jones, of course, nobody is like him. He beats the monsters. I did all my training with Alexander Gustafsson; I know how good he is. And if Jon Jones could stop that guy, it’s scary.” Jones had defeated Gustafsson in a third-round TKO in UFC 232 in 2018.

With that in mind, how do you see the highly anticipated heavyweight clash between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic unfolding? Will Khamzat Chimaev’s prediction reign supreme? Does the lifelong heavyweight Miocic possess the skill and resilience make the mighty ‘Bones’ kneel in defeat? Drop your opinion below!