Will Jon Jones Fight Tom Aspinall?

By Tim Burke November 19, 2024 19:45

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Jon Jones finally defended his heavyweight title at UFC 309, knocking out the legendary Stipe Miocic with a spinning heel kick to the body in round 3.
Following Jon Jones's performance, everyone is wondering whether he will finally fight the heavyweight interim champion, Tom Aspinall.

"I decided that maybe I won't retire. I have some conversations to have with Dan and Hunter, and we have some negotiating to do, and if everything goes right, maybe we will give you guys what you want to see." Jon Jones told Joe Rogan following his historic UFC 309 win. This is a strong indication that he will fight Tom Aspinall, contrary to the numerous statements he made about the British Heavyweight throughout the build-up to the fight.

Shortly afterward, Jon Jones changed his tune when speaking to reporters at the UFC 309 post-fight press conference, causing doubts among MMA fans once more.

"He's annoying to me. And that's my own personal; he annoys me. I get to you guys. You find it entertaining, but I find him annoying, and I just don't like him. At the end of the day, if I allow him to fight me. I want to be so compensated. My life is perfect without him. I don't need him at all." Jones told reporters.

So the question is, will the fight happen? Whether intentional or not, everything Jon Jones says about not wanting to fight Tom Aspinall has only increased the demand for the fight, which has only made the UFC want to book it more.

At the end of the day, it is hard to see the UFC not offering Jones the type of compensation he is seeking to book this fight. It is, without a doubt, the biggest fight the UFC can make for 2025. Whether it happens or not is solely up to Jon Jones, and he is as unpredictable as it gets. It really depends on how he views the fight and Tom Aspinall personally. Jones is an emotional person, and Tom Aspinall has clearly got under his skin without doing anything. Aspinall has a theory as to why.

"On the contrary to what he says, I have never been an asshole to him. But yeah we've got a bit of a banter with this duck thing going. Oh, they're so offensive. Do you know what I mean? He's gonna be offended by reading a duck emoji here and there. Come on, Jon. Stop being so sensitive, bro. Like he's offended somewhere deep in his mind and deep in his soul, he knows that I can bounce his head off the canvas. He knows it." Aspinall stated this during Monday's episode of the Ariel Helwani Show.

Does Jon Jones know this? Jones is an intelligent mixed martial artist and a true student of the sport. Very few fighters are on Jones's level in terms of Fight IQ. One fighter on Jones's level is Demetrius Johnson, a fighter who is also on many Greatest MMA Fighters of all time Mt. Rushmore's in the MMA community.

Johnson stated on his YouTube channel, "Tom Aspinall has the speed, the athleticism, and the power to give Jon Jones problems. Tom Aspinall can beat him; I feel comfortable saying that."

Jon Jones knows Tom Aspinall can beat him. It comes down to whether Jon Jones is afraid to lose. A fighter such as Jon Jones is not afraid to lose.
Despite Jon Jones's ambivalence toward Tom Aspinall, it is clear that the demand for this fight is growing, every day. The tension between the two fighters, fueled by their respective mindsets, only adds to the stakes. With the UFC's interest in capitalizing on what would be the biggest fight they could make in 2025, it seems increasingly probable that a deal will be reached.