If Jon Jones plans to fight again after facing Stipe Miocic at UFC 309, he only has one option and that’s a showdown with interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall.
That’s according to UFC CEO Dana White, who responded to Jones’ comments leading up to his fight on Saturday where he’s repeatedly shut down a potential fight against Aspinall and instead favored a matchup with UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira. Jones even went as far as saying Aspinall is “such an assh*le that I don’t want to do business with him.”
“He’s not fighting Pereira,” White told Jim Rome when asked about Jones’ plans for the future. “[Pereira] was a middleweight that moved up to light heavyweight. He’s also a kickboxer who has done very, very well in MMA. His wrestling isn’t even near the level of Jon Jones and Jon Jones is way bigger than him.
“If Jon Jones wants to fight again after Saturday night, he will fight Tom Aspinall.”
That’s great news for Aspinall, who is currently in New York to play the backup for the fight between Jones and Miocic on Saturday,
Aspinall claimed the interim heavyweight title almost exactly one year ago after Jones suffered a torn pectoral muscle that forced him to delay the fight against Miocic. In the meantime, Aspinall defended his interim belt with a stunning first-round knockout over Curtis Blaydes back in July.
Since then, Aspinall has repeatedly called for the fight against Jones while stating that he’s facing Miocic for the “most disputed title” in the UFC.
Everything Aspinall said has only caused Jones to dig in his heels that much more whenever he addresses the potential fight but White says that’s the only matchup he’s willing to make.
“Jon’s weird in how he deals with this type of stuff,” White said. “Like he’ll show up for a fight like this, he’ll be prepared mentally, physically, and everything else and then when the fight’s over, he sort of goes and disappears and he wants to challenge himself again and Tom Aspinall is there. He’s doing the whole ‘he doesn’t deserve it’ … but Jon when was 23 years old and he became the youngest champion ever, somebody gave him the opportunity for greatness. I think Jon will eventually come back and face Tom Aspinall.
“But if he decides Saturday night that’s it, it’s over, it’s his right to make that decision. What this guy has accomplished, nobody else has even come close to accomplishing and he’s the greatest of all time. So we’ll see.”
White is rather adamant when addressing Jones either taking the Aspinall fight or calling it a career but he refuses to believe that the reigning UFC heavyweight champion is actually ducking anybody.
That narrative has plagued Jones in the days leading up to his fight against Miocic but White promises that couldn’t be further from the truth.
“For anybody to say he’s ducking anybody, Jon Jones is like 37, 38 years old, he’s fought everybody,” White said. “He’s fought all the best in the world, in their prime, been doing it since he was 23 years old. He doesn’t duck. And he’s undefeated, he’s never lost a fight, which is unbelievable in like 16 years.”
For all the ways Jones has refused to even acknowledge Aspinall as a potential opponent, White won’t close the door on that fight actually happening down the road.
If Jones wins on Saturday, White expects him to take some time off before deciding whether or not he wants to compete again. Assuming Jones wants to return for another fight, White is confident he’ll take on Aspinall.
“That is classic Jon Jones right there. Classic Jon Jones,” White said. “Jon will do what he does on Saturday, if he wins, he’ll disappear for a while and then that competitive spirit will start bubbling up again and then money will talk. If he doesn’t decide to retire, he absolutely, positively fights Aspinall.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login