UFC make U-turn on fight rule just days before Jon Jones vs Stipe Miocic

The two stars will go head-to-head in a mouthwatering heavyweight clash this weekend, but the pair have been hit with a major rule change just days before the fight

Fighters competing at UFC 309 in New York this weekend have been informed that they will be using the old gloves as opposed to the new design.

The blockbuster pay-per-view card - which is set to be headlined by a heavyweight title fight between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic - will take place at Madison Square Garden in New York. Jones comes into the clash off the back of a win against Ciryl Gane at UFC 285. On that night, the former light-heavyweight champion picked up the 265lb strap.

As for Miocic, the former heavyweight champion has not fought since suffering a brutal knockout defeat to Francis Ngannou three years ago. Both Miocic and Jones were scheduled to fight last year at UFC 295, but 'Bones' was forced to withdraw from the bout after he tore his pectoral tendon during training.

Jones has teased that the clash with the MMA legend might be the last time the UFC faithful see the American step foot inside the cage. The co-main event this weekend will see lightweight stars Michael Chandler and Charles Oliveira go toe-to-toe in a mouthwatering rematch.

With both Jones and Miocic in the final stages of their respective training camps, the UFC have decide to drop a major bombshell with just days to go until the event. That's according to MMA journalist, Ariel Helwani, who reported that the MMA promotion has told fighters they’ll be competing with the old gloves.

Taking to X - formerly known as Twitter - Helwani wrote: "UFC has informed the fighters competing on Saturday’s 309 card in NYC that they will be using the old gloves not the new ones introduced back in June, per multiple sources. Specific reason unclear at the moment."

The newer gloves were designed to reduce eye pokes and hand injuries. They also featured less rigidity than the previous version, along with updates to the seams, padding, wristband, and finger holes. They debuted at UFC 302 back in June and have since sparked many debates within the MMA community. Since the major change, knockouts have dropped by 10 per cent from June to October 2024. As of yet, it remains to be seen whether or not this will be a permanent move.

Speaking ahead of his clash with Paulo Costa earlier this year, Sean Strickland hit out at the new design: "They suck. Can we talk to the person who designed these gloves? Have you ever been in a fight in your f****** life? It’s like you get these f****** dorks that have no idea. Like, this sounds like a good idea and they make it. Same thing with motorcycles. I’ve bought motorcycles and they put so much stupid s**t on it. How did you a**holes think this was a good idea? So no, they absolutely suck. You dropped the ball on that one."

Many fans will be intrigued to see how both Jones and Miocic will fare with the old gloves. In the build-up to the clash, Jones has been hit with several questions regarding a potential fight with Tom Aspinall. The two heavyweight stars have been tipped to fight each other, but Jones has now dismissed the possibility of a match-up should he continue to fight. When asked by Kevin Iole about the prospect of facing Aspinall, he said: “More than likely not. I feel like Tom Aspinall is, I don’t want to say ‘nobody’, but he just hasn’t proven anything. He hasn’t done anything – I understand that he won his belt against Sergei, Sergei just got slaughtered by someone else.

“So I’m not here to gamble someone else making a name off of me, I’m here to compete against the guys where when we look back 10 years from now, ‘Jon Jones fought this guy, that guy, this legend, this champion…’.”