Even though Jon Jones doesn’t want to fight Tom Aspinall, head honcho Dana White believes this is the biggest fight he has on his hands. The 55-year-old even claims that it’s important for ‘Bones’ to pass on the torch to the next generation and fighting the English star is the way to go. However, it seems like another heavyweight contender has shown interest in fighting for the title after Aspinall claimed he had no issues with that proposition.
Jon Jones could either fight whom he wants or will consider hanging up the belt if the payout to fight Tom Aspinall doesn’t meet his expectations. In that case, maybe the interim champion could give another fighter a chance after what he had to say on his YouTube channel. In a Q&A session, a fan asked Aspinall about fighting Jailton Almeida, who’s been on a roll ever since joining the UFC back in 2021.
Tom Aspinall seems to have nothing other than praise to shower on his Brazilian heavyweight counterpart, claiming that he’s open to fight ‘Malhadinho’. However, the only condition that the Manchester native has is to fight with the undisputed belt on the line. “Haven’t fought Almeida. Up-and-coming. Very good from what I’ve seen. Again, I would absolutely fight him in a heartbeat if the UFC want to do it for an undisputed title because that’s what I deserve,”
Aspinall stated.
Word spread fast as Jailton Almeida caught wind of Tom Aspinall’s comments. The interim champ also mentioned having a few fighters left in the top 10 whom he’s yet to fight. Besides Almeida, the British star named Ciryl Gane, as well. But ‘Malhadinho’ is not having any of it. While claiming that Gane doesn’t deserve a title shot after looking at his last few performances, the Brazilian heavyweight made it clear to Aspinall and Dana White that he’s willing to step up in case Jon Jones doesn’t get onboard with the interim champ.
“If the fight against Jones doesnt work, LETS GO Champ,” Jailton Almeida tweeted. “Forget Gane, he ducked you before, he is ducking me now, besides that, he already lost 2-times in title fights and his last win was a robbery, lets make ASPINALL VS ALMEIDA for undisputed title.”
If the fight against Jones doesnt work, LETS GO Champ! Forget Gane, he ducked you before, he is ducking me now, besides that, he already lost 2-times in title fights and his last win was a robbery, lets make ASPINALL VS ALMEIDA for undisputed title @AspinallMMA @danawhite pic.twitter.com/ygIHk2lkJd
— Jailton Almeida “Malhadinho” (@Malhadinho_UFC) March 3, 2025
The heavyweight title scene needs to get going, and if getting Jon Jones to fight Tom Apsinall gets delayed, he might have to make the Briton put his interim title on the line once again. He’s already defended it once, so maybe he does it again. Despite giving Jailton Almeida the green light, Aspinall is still gunning for the Jones fight and it seems like the undisputed champion could get onboard very soon.
Jon Jones sends a message to Tom Aspinall
Jon Jones has already mentioned that he’s going to stick around for some more time after his last fight. And amidst the ongoing murmurs of a title unification fight, the 37-year-old made sure to let fans and Tom Aspinall that he’s not going anywhere despite the lack of news on his next fight and future in the UFC. “I’ll be back,” Jones stated in a post on Instagram.
March 4, 2023, Las Vegas, NV, LAS VEGAS, NV, USA: LAS VEGAS, NV – MARCH 4: Jon Jones prepares to fight Ciryl Gane in their Heavyweight fight during the UFC 285 event at T-Mobile Arena on March 4, 2023 in Las Vegas, NV, USA. Las Vegas, NV USA – ZUMAp175 20230304_zsa_p175_246 Copyright: xLouisxGrassex
But what do you think about Tom Aspinall’s chances against Jon Jones? While some fans see ‘Bones’ doing a number on Aspinall, some see the latter, being a true heavyweight, would be the first one to hand Jones a clean defeat. Well, one of the Manchester native’s old foes who defeated him before his UFC advent, Stuart Austin believes that the undisputed champ to stick to wrestling and not engage in a standup game with Aspinall.
“I think clinch and wrestling would probably be the way to go for Jon, because if he strikes with Aspinall, I think there’s only one person going to win that fight,” Tom Aspinall’s ex-rival told talkSport. “So maybe Jon could test the deep waters, try and take him a little bit further. But again, maybe you don’t have that as a choice. I’m sure everyone’s tried to take him a little bit further. He’s an amazing martial artist. You know, he really is the best heavyweight right now.”
We still don’t have any answers until Dana White comes out with something substantial. But in the meantime, let us know your thoughts in the comments down below.
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