Jon Jones thanks coaches, quotes Bruce Lee and explains the kick that knocked out Stipe Miocic at UFC 309

Jon Jones defeats Miocic by knockout, defends belt in UFC 309 and denies retirement. Photo: Reproduction/Twitter/UFC

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In the main fight UFC 309 this Saturday (16), Jon Jones showed why he is considered the best of all time and, after dominating the fight for two rounds, knocked out Stipe Miocic in the third round. 'Bones' victory came through a spinning kick that hit the firefighter's rib and, according to the champion, the move was trained exhaustively during preparation.

In the post-fight press conference, Jones highlighted his dedication by mentioning the spinning kick, the result of months of specific training with his taekwondo coach. The champion thanked his coaching team and cited martial arts icon Bruce Lee to illustrate the focused work on both bases until achieving the perfection of the movement that earned him the victory.

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“One thing I was really happy with was that spinning back kick. I have amazing coaches: Brandon Gibson, Greg Jackson, Alex, Aaron. I’m just naming my striking coaches right now, but I want to thank my taekwondo coach, Paige Bates, from Albuquerque. About six months ago, we started training the spinning back kick. He came to my house three times a week, and I worked on the same kick on both bases, three hours a week, for several months. It’s like Bruce Lee says, ‘I’m not afraid of the man who knows 10 kicks, but the man who has thrown a kick 10 times.’ And boy, did I work on that,” Jones said.

The champion expressed pride in the success of his hours of training, in addition to highlighting the power of the blow which, even without hitting the liver, was capable of causing considerable damage to his rival.

“The spinning back kick is getting faster and more unpredictable. There’s really no way to know when it’s going to happen and it’s a devastating attack. I didn’t hit Stipe’s liver, I hit him on the opposite side, but I mean that could break a rib, it’s a very powerful strike. So I’m proud to have landed it after so many hours of work.”, concluded ‘Bones’.

With victory, Jon Jones defended the heavyweight title (up to 120,2 kg) for the first time and became the fourth UFC fighter to defend the title in two different categories.