Stipe Miocic speaks out for the first time since Jon Jones fight cancelation (Video)

Earlier this week it was revealed that the highly-anticipated fight between UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones and former UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic was off due to a pectoral injury to Jones.

When the announcement was made of the cancelation, UFC president Dana White also announced the new match-up an interim title fight between No. 2 ranked Sergei Pavlovich and No. 4 ranked Tom Aspinall.

But many wondered why Miocic didn't stay on the card and fight Pavlovich who was the designated back-up for this exact reason. It's been almost a week since the news broke and Miocic is finally speaking out.

“How did I feel when I woke up today? Like I got kicked in the nuts,” Miocic said in a video posted to his OnlyFans account. “In the morning, I woke up to my phone vibrating. It was dark, I had my son on top of me, trying to move and get my phone. I finally got my phone and had a text message from my manager saying my fight was off. I couldn’t sleep the rest of the night. I was supposed to fight Jon Jones in about two weeks in New York, UFC 295, Madison Square Garden. I was pretty excited about that. Actually really excited. I guess he tore something in his chest. Unfortunately, that happens. It’s part of the game. Hopefully he gets better and feels better, but what happens now. Do I fight somebody else? I don’t know.”

While speaking to FanSided MMA on Wednesday night, White explained why they didn't offer Miocic a back-up fighter.

“Stipe’s not fighting for an interim title. Jones said, ‘I want to fight Stipe. I said, ‘You’re fighting Stipe.’ You have the greatest heavyweight to all-time, versus the greatest martial artist of all time," he said. "This is a legacy fight for both of those guys. To even call Stipe and ask Stipe to fight for an interim title, is complete disrespect. This is a fight for two legends. Legacy. Two of the greatest to ever do it. The fans want to see it, I want to see it and they both want to do it.”

Miocic seemed to agree with White, to an extent.

“I don’t know why I didn’t get picked, which is fine,” Miocic said. “I understand they have a direction they want to go. I’m okay with that. Every guy in the division is tough. I definitely want to fight the biggest fish, which is Jon Jones. It wasn’t my choice, it was theirs. Listen, everything happens for a reason. The fight being canceled, it sucks. No question about it. Unfortunately, that’s just the game we’re in. It happens. Like I said, I hope he’s okay. You want to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best. I want that belt back. It’s my belt. It’s going to happen.”

For now, the plan is to make Jones vs. Miocic when Jones returns in 2024, and the winner of that will fight the winner of Pavlovich vs. Aspinall.