05 March 2023 , 06:16
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Rapper Drake won $1.7million from his $500,000 bet as Jon Jones choked out Ciryl Gane to win the UFC heavyweight title in Las Vegas.
Jones, 35, was making heavyweight debut against Gane in the main event of UFC 285 in Las Vegas with the division’s undisputed title on the line. And Canadian rap artist Drake backed 'Bones' to become a two-weight champion in the fight as he staked $250,000 on the fighter to win by submission and $250,000 for him to win by knockout.
And Jones' three-minute submission win returned $1.7m, the better result for Drake who would have banked $1.3m if Jones had won the belt by KO.
Jon Jones celebrates becoming the UFC heavyweight champion (David Becker/AP/REX/Shutterstock)Drake's huge bet didn't come as a surprise as the monumental rapper lost $400,000 last weekend when he backed YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul to beat Love Island star Tommy Fury in their grudge fight. Drake first gained attention for UFC bets when he predicted Jorge Masvidal would beat Colby Covington in their grudge fight last March. The rapper lost $275,000 on the fight and his bad luck continued when Justin Gaethje was choked out by Charles Oliveira in their lightweight title clash just three two later.
After a horrendous few months for 'Drizzy', he broke his bad run of form by winning a $1m bet on former champion Israel Adesanya to beat Jared Cannonier in their middleweight title clash last at UFC 276. The rapper's six-figure bets finally paid off when Paddy Pimblett and Molly McCann won their respective fights UFC London. The Liverpool duo were then gifted luxury Rolex watches by Drake after winning him a $3.6m payday.
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Jones will defend his new title against Stipe Miocic in July and added: "Stipe Miocic, I hope you're training, my guy. You're the greatest heavyweight of all-time, and that's what I want. I want you — real bad." Miocic offered a typically low-key response to Jones' win when he said: "Good for him. Hey, you won. I'll see him in July. I'm going to train my ass off and I'm going to beat his ass."