Tom Aspinall isn’t confident he will fight Jon Jones for the undisputed UFC heavyweight title.
On November 11, Aspinall capitalized on Jones’ torn pectoral muscle by securing a first-round knockout win against Sergei Pavlovich for the UFC interim heavyweight title. Although the English fan-favorite acquired UFC gold, the opportunity has arguably created more problems than solutions.
Jones isn’t expected to fight again until mid-2024. Once ‘Bones’ returns, Dana White has guaranteed his legacy matchup against Stipe Miocic will be re-scheduled, putting Aspinall in a position to defend his interim title or remain sidelined for longer than he wants to.
Aspinall recently did an interview with True Geordie, where he was asked about the ongoing situation with Jones and the UFC heavyweight title. The 30-year-old interim title-holder responded by saying:
“It’s very odd. Obviously, I don’t want to sit here and slagging off my bosses, but it’s not right. It’s not right. There can’t be f*cking two heavyweight champions, there can’t be, this isn’t boxing. There’s one guy, one face, one name, and let’s find out who that is.”
Tom Aspinall was then asked about Jon Jones potentially not wanting to fight him. He responded by saying:
“I’d be surprised if we got to fight. I would love it. I think he’s smart, I think he’s smart. If the shoe was on the other foot, I wouldn’t fight me either. That’s not me bringing myself up. It’s just like, why would you not fight a guy that’s 42, 43, a million miles on the clock, and then backdoor it as opposed to this guy who’s just steamrolling everybody? I think it’s smart. I don’t think he’s scared. He’s Jon Jones. He’s not scared of anybody. I think he’s just really smart.”
Watch Tom Aspinall’s entire interview with True Geordie below:
Tom Aspinall agrees with critics who question his chin placement
Tom Aspinall’s last fight against Sergei Pavlovich was a near-perfect performance, as he secured a knockout win in 69 seconds. With that said, some fans pointed out that Aspinall’s chin was up for most of the striking exchanges, which is extremely dangerous in the heavyweight division.
During the previously mentioned interview with True Geordie, Aspinall responded to the critics with the following humble message:
“I agree my chin is in the air. It’s something I’m working on. Bad habits, same as anybody else. I’m training every day to make them better. I think you can learn from anybody. I can see my bad habits just as much as anybody else. I’m not gonna sit here like I am the ultimate complete finished product right now. Even when I’m retired from fighting, I’m still going to be trying to improve my martial arts skills forever. I’m a lifelong martial artist.”
It’s unclear when and who Tom Aspinall will fight next. Undoubtedly, Aspinall doesn’t want to wait for the winner of Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic, which could lead to another tough matchup that’s not for the undisputed UFC heavyweight title. It’ll be intriguing to see how the situation plays out.
