Tom Aspinall has grown tired of all this talk about who’s the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.
The argument has been going on for years with several stars such as Jon Jones, Demetrious Johnson and others holding down the top spot in the UFC’s pound-for-pound rankings in past years with lightweight champion Islam Makhachev currently considered to be the #1 fighter as of today.
UFC CEO Dana White argued #2-ranked Jones should be over Makhachev in the conversation as he’s never lost, claiming if Jones was thrown into a room with anybody, he would walk out the victor “all day, every time” as he repeated the sentiment on “Club Shay Shay“.
Aspinall To Create His Own Legacy With Or Without ‘Bones’
Interim heavyweight champion Aspinall might tend to disagree as he’d like to unify the title against Jones, but he’ll settle instead for a rare interim title defense against former foe Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304 in the meantime.
“Obviously, I’ve been rallying for [the Jones fight] for a long time,” Aspinall told MMA Junkie’s Farah Hannoun. “I’ve not got the fight, and I don’t know if it’s ever gonna happen, but I’m not really that bothered. I’m here to create my own legacy. I’m trying to be great myself, and I don’t need Jon Jones to do that. If I could get that fantastic, like I really think I can beat him, but I ain’t focused on that right now, to be honest. I’m just thinking about Curtis Blaydes and that’s it.”
“It’s A Stupid Argument”, Aspinall Goes Off On The Meaning Of ‘Pound-For-Pound’
As for his thoughts on where Jon Jones should stand in the pound-for-pound conversation, higher or lower than Makhachev, Aspinall could really care less about the “hypothetical” rankings that are ultimately decided by media members. The term “pound-for-pound” is often used in combat sports to decide who the best is, regardless of weight class. So, you might imagine how that sounds to arguably one of the baddest men on the planet in Aspinall.
“I think that pound-for-pound fighters and pound-for-pound rankings is some of the stupidest, silliest, most ludicrous concepts that anyone could ever make up,” Aspinall said, when asked where Jones should be ranked. “It’s a hypothetical thing. What you gonna do? Make everyone in the world the same size and have them fight each other? It’s impossible. It’s a stupid argument.
“You get all these nerds online arguing about, ‘Oh, if this guy was the same size as this guy who would win?’ Like, what’s the point? It’s like saying if a monkey and a giraffe were the same size, who would win in a fight? It’s just ridiculous. It’s just absolute ludicrous talk. So, these pound-for-pound rankings and pound-for-pound, I can’t believe people actually care about that, to be honest. It’s silly.”
More On The Matter
Aspinall, who is ranked #13 pound-for-pound, has no desire to be #1 in that conversation— only to be the best fighter in the world.
“I’m 260 pounds right now. If you’re gonna make me fight Demetrious Johnson, for example, who’s 125 pounds, who do you think’s gonna win?… You can’t prove who’s gonna win pound for pound. So, what’s the point in considering it? It’s like saying, if Ronda Rousey was a male, would she beat Dustin Poirier in a fight? Like it’s, it’s ludicrous talk. It’s stupid. What’s the point in talking about it? Waste of breath.”
Do you agree with Tom Aspinall’s take on the pound-for-pound conversation?
