The clock is ticking for Dana White to decide the fate of Jon Jones, Tom Aspinall, and the entire heavyweight division, which has remained stagnant due to the ongoing three-way standoff between Jones, White, and Aspinall. It has been approximately 16 months since the British fighter won the interim heavyweight title, and after defending it once against Curtis Blaydes, Aspinall is determined to fight only one opponent—Jon Jones. However, with the undisputed champion remaining unresponsive to the challenge, the interim champion has now come forward with a concerning update.
The entire MMA community has one question that the UFC CEO has to answer: Is Jon Jones fighting Tom Aspinall or not? At the UFC 313 post-fight press conference, Dana White asserted, “Listen, Jon Jones wants to fight. [It’s] just when and where is what we’re working on now.” Well, despite this statement, Tom Aspinall has come forward to give us some worrisome updates about his patience. While having a conversation with ‘Jamal Niaz,’ the Britisher has emphasized that his patience is at its limit and he is bored of the discussions now.
“I’ve had enough talking about it, mate. I’m honestly bored of it. We’ll see what happens. Yeah, we’ll just see. I’m ready to fight whenever they tell me, so just let me know. I’ll be there.” If we look at the heavyweight division, it is certain that it has been held captive by Jon Jones for the past two years. The undisputed heavyweight king has held the championship for two years but has defended it only once, and that was against an out-of-prime Stipe Miocic.
Tom Aspinall with post event media during the UFC 304 event at Co-op Etihad Campus, SportCity, Manchester, England on the 27 July 2024. Copyright: xAndyxRowlandx PMI-6350-0004
Instead of facing Tom Aspinall, Jon Jones even expressed his willingness to fight former light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira. However, since ‘Poatan’ lost his title to Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313, the landscape has shifted drastically, making a Jones vs. Pereira matchup unlikely. With no options left besides a fight against Tom Aspinall or retirement, it will be crucial to see what Jones ultimately decides for himself.
Interestingly, when Alex Pereira uploaded a video briefing his fans about his loss, Jones took to the comment section to write, “Disappointed, I was looking forward to sharing the octagon with you.” And guess who responded? It was Tom Aspinall who warned Jones, “You got nowhere to run Jon.” ‘Bones’ later deleted his comment. Well, as Jones avoids any confrontation against Aspinall, veterans believe that his star power is taking an immense hit.
MMA veterans believe Jon Jones might be making a huge mistake by not fighting Tom Aspinall
When discussing Jon Jones, it’s essential to acknowledge that he is one of the most formidable fighters in MMA. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that Jones played a monumental role in the UFC’s global rise. However, despite his 15 title defenses and amazing presence under the UFC banner, UFC veterans Josh Thomson and John McCarthy are a little skeptical about ‘Bone’s career for now.
While having a conversation on ‘Weighing In podcast,’ Thomson questioned about the shrinking fan base of Jones: “The bottom line is, I feel like people right now would rather just see him go, so we can move on with the sport. This lingering around of ‘Oh am I gonna fight Tom Aspinall or not’ or I think that if he left, no one would care anymore. They’re like, ‘It’s good’. He’s gone now we can move on and the sport can start to take off. Do you know when people, kind of, like are just hanging around for too long? And they make it about them. He should I think he should try to get as much money as he possibly can to fight Tom Aspinall.”
He further added, “He’s only got 1 million pay-per-view buys once. It was the second DC fight. He has never broken 1 million pay-per-view buys before.” Jon Jones is looking for a final fight that would conclude his career and give him enough money and in his pursuit he has been holding the entire division hostage. With Dana White’s promise and Tom Aspinall’s worrisome statement, the UFC should fast-forward the negotiations. What do you think about the fiasco? State your opinion in the comments below.
The post “I’m Honestly Bored of It” – Tom Aspinall Sends a Message to Dana White on Jon Jones Potential Fight appeared first on EssentiallySports.
