Jon Jones reveals Stipe Miocic fight date

According to UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones, he'll be fighting Stipe Miocic on Nov. 9. He first tweeted that the event would happen at Madison Square Garden but then deleted the tweet. His follow-up was in response to a fan who he reassured he wasn't retiring, but fighting on Nov. 9.

This is the second time these two have been booked to fight. They were supposed to fight on Nov. 11, 2023, but just a few weeks before the fight Jones was injured while training. The fight was called off and Tom Aspinall won the interim title after he defeated Sergei Pavlovich.

Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic is scheduled for Nov. 9

Speaking of Aspinall ... he will defend the interim title at UFC 304 in Manchester when he rematches with Curtis Blaydes in the co-main event. Jones tweeted about that announcement too writing, "Curtis versus Tom for the official number one contender spot!"

Many had criticized Jones for holding up the division for not fighting Aspinall and instead going for a legacy fight. Jones responded to those haters as well tweeting, "Trolls telling me I’m slowing down the division by getting injured. Meanwhile, the next two heavyweights aren’t even a main event? interesting. I’m on the right path, I got until November to remind the world. Again."

One of those "trolls" is Aspinall himself. And he's not exactly wrong. Its unheard of for a sitting champion to return form a hiatus and not fight the interim champion. It's also pretty wild to have an interim champion defend their interim title.

“That’s not me, that’s someone else at the top of the division,” Aspinall said on his YouTube channel. “It’s not me. I’m here to fight people. [I] love this stuff, this is what I was born to do, this is what I wanted to do since the year started — since the last fight against Pavlovich — I’ve wanted to get back in there. ...”

Jones hasn't fought since he defeated Ciryl Gane in his heavyweight debut. That fight took place at UFC 285 on March 4, 2023. He hasn't fought since.