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ESPN- Andreas Hale is a combat sports reporter at ESPN. Andreas covers MMA, boxing and pro wrestling. In Andreas' free time, he plays video games, obsesses over music and is a White Sox and 49ers fan. He is also a host for Sirius XM's Fight Nation. Before joining ESPN, Andreas was a senior writer at DAZN and Sporting News. He started his career as a music journalist for outlets including HipHopDX, The Grammys and Jay-Z's Life+Times. He is also an NAACP Image Award-nominated filmmaker as a producer for the animated short film "Bridges" in 2024.
Jon Jones returns to the Octagon after a 20-month layoff for his first heavyweight title defense against former champion Stipe Miocic. The highly anticipated main event at UFC 309 is one of 13 fights that will take place at Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday night (10 ET on ESPN+ PPV, with early prelims at 6 on Hulu/ESPN+ and prelims at 8 on ESPNEWS/FX/Hulu/ESPN+).
Jones won the title -- which was vacated by Francis Ngannou after a contract dispute with the UFC -- with an efficient first-round submission win over Ciryl Gane at UFC 285 in March 2023. Jones is unbeaten since his disqualification loss in 2009 to Matt Hamill due to illegal elbows.
Miocic, the most decorated heavyweight in the promotion's history, returns to the Octagon for the first time since 2021. In his last fight, he was dethroned via a knockout loss to Ngannou.
In the co-main event, Michael Chandler returns to competition after two years of inactivity to take on former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira (ESPN's No. 3-ranked lightweight) in a rematch. In their first matchup, Oliveira was victorious with a second-round TKO in May 2021.
Andreas Hale spoke to former UFC light heavyweight champion and current ESPN analyst Rashad Evans -- who fought Jones at UFC 145 in 2012 -- to get his perspective on the heavyweight title clash. ESPN betting expert Ian Parker adds insight and analysis on the main event and other intriguing bets he likes on the card.
Editor's note: Responses have been edited for brevity and clarity.
