The UFC’s heavyweight division is at a standstill as Jon Jones, the undisputed champion, is recovering from an injury that forced him out of UFC 295. His absence led the UFC to put an interim title on the line at the PPV, which Tom Aspinall won handily against Sergei Pavlovich.
Will Jon Jones lock horns with Tom Aspinall after he recovers? Will Aspinall ever get the chance to showcase his talents against the man considered the consensus GOAT of the sport?
Tom Aspinall confident of beating Jon Jones after first-ever meet
Jon Jones has been traveling for quite some time after the success of his pectoral and elbow surgery. The undisputed heavyweight champion was recently in Birmingham, which is just one and a half hours away from Salford, where Aspinall resides.
Aspinall caught wind of Jones’ arrival and met him, even posing for a picture together. However, after the meeting, Aspinall was not particularly impressed by the fighter currently ranked second in the pound-for-pound rankings. “He’s nowhere near as big as I thought,” said the 6-ft 5-in Aspinall of the 6ft 4-in Jones.
“I’ll take him. I think I’d beat him,” Aspinall further added as he predicted an easy victory for him if he potentially gets the chance to fight Jones. Dana White had already confirmed that Jones will fight Stipe Miocic on his return from injury. After that, White is unaware of the future of Jones.
Jones was recently in Riyadh to watch PFL vs Bellator: Champs and had an interaction with Francis Ngannou, another potential opponent for Jones. However, Ngannou is with the PFL, and the chances of it happening are even lower than that of a fight with Aspinall.
Jon Jones shrugs off Tom Aspinall’s hand off his shoulder
Even though Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall posed for a photo together, the meeting was not at all cordial. Jones refused Aspinall’s request to face off and even shrugged Aspinall’s hand when the Brit placed it on his shoulder, as reported by Marca.
Jones’ actions could be interpreted as the heavyweight champion acknowledging Aspinall as a potential opponent. Another theory is that Aspinall was trying to measure his distance against Jones, which the American understood and responded to.
Interestingly, Aspinall kept his hand on the shoulder of his opponent Sergei Pavlovich in his recent fight at UFC 295, where he scored a first-round knockout victory. Pavlovich also placed his hand on Aspinall’s shoulder before his brutal loss.
Aspinall might not get a chance to fight Jones but he could get a chance to fight Curtis Blaydes, the only man to defeat him in the UFC. Blaydes recently defeated Jailton Almeida at UFC 298 and already called out Aspinall who already wanted to face the winner of Blaydes vs Almeida.
Do you think Jon Jones will ever fight Tom Aspinall? Leave your thoughts below!
