Will Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall ever fight? We don’t know. It is a question that only Jones himself and maybe Dana White see the answer to. What we know is that Tom Aspinall is all for it. He even uses every opportunity to provoke Jones and make him enter the Octagon against the English fighter.
Tom’s latest attempt to rattle the heavyweight champ came during an interview with Jon Bernard Kairouz. Aspinall was asked to make his GOAT list of MMA fighters, and Tom, who has eight wins and only one defeat in his UFC career, had a prepared answer. Jones is a former UFC lightweight champion and the reigning heavyweight champion with a 22-1 record in the UFC, but that was not enough to make him No. 1 on this list.
Aspinall is as honest as they come, and he is very clear about his reasoning. For Tom, the number one of all time is Georges St-Pierre. Why? Well, for Tom, the fact that he never failed for PEDs is reason enough. If you remember, despite all of his accolades, Jon Jones was suspended for one year by UFC for testing positive for hydroxy-clomiphene right before UFC 200, where he was scheduled to face Daniel Cormier. Now, that would be a match that would merit a record amount of live MMA betting.
Luckily, we all had a chance to bet on their duel as it was rescheduled for UFC 214. But it’s different from where the story ends. Jon Bones Jones did win against DC, but that win was overturned after he tested positive for anabolic steroid Turinabol in the aftermath of the match. After that incident, Jones spent 15 months on the sidelines. Not even these controversies stopped him from being ranked as the #1 fighter in the UFC and becoming the heavyweight champion.
Yet, it was not enough for Tom Aspinall, the interim champion in the same division who desperately wants to see Jones fight him in the Octagon. For him, GSP is number one, but he doesn’t want to diminish Jon any further. For Aspinall, Jon is one of the greatest, and he slots him right into the number two position.
Aspinall respects Jones, but he stands behind his reasoning and calls for Jones to accept his call to have a heavyweight division title fight between them or at least to vacate the belt so that it’s open for Tom to get it. Jones is fresh off a win against Stipe Miocic in a duel that saw him defend his title once again, and while he’s been pushed to answer Tom’s calls, he certainly doesn’t have that in mind right now. Yet, according to Tom Aspinall, a duel between the heavyweight winner of UFC 309 and him might be on the cards.
Those who follow Tom Aspinall on YouTube and have viewed his channel in recent weeks know that there are ongoing negotiations to schedule the Jones vs. Aspinall fight. Tom stated that he doesn’t have the date, but when it’s arranged, he’ll be ready for it. For now, he is in the gym, getting ready and training.
In the meantime, the Englishman is getting a bit impatient. His preparations are already underway regardless of the opponent, but he would love to schedule a fight as soon as possible. For now, he’s prepared to wait for both the opportunity and the date, but he certainly will take the decision and wait for his next fight. It’s all about improving and getting better for Tom until it’s time to start.
Tom Aspinall’s last UFC outing was at UFC 304, where he knocked out Curtis Blaydes after only one minute in the Octagon. The list of fighters Aspinall could fight is getting shorter. After his win against Blaydes, he even suggested that the UFC should host a tournament where Jones would fight Miocic and Aspinall would go against Pereira.
Of course, Dana White did not accept any of this. The UFC CEO did state that if Jones wants to hold onto his title, he will have to fight Aspinall, who is looking to unify both belts after becoming interim heavyweight champion. For a man whose fights, on average, last a little bit over 2 minutes, it is no wonder people are not standing in line to give him a go. Even independent outlets have him ranked as the #3 pound-for-pound UFC fighter, whereas Jones is at #6.
Right now, we’re late into the UFC season, and with UFC 310 being the last PPV of the season, we’re sure that we won’t see Aspinall fight Jones this year. We’ll leave the matter of what comes next in their careers for 2025, and if it brings us this heavyweight duel, it tops this one in all ways.
