Tom Aspinall has heard the numerous times recently that UFC CEO Dana White has gone out of his way to argue that heavyweight champion Jon Jones is pound-for-pound the best fighter in the world.
Well, Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC), who holds the UFC interim heavyweight title, highly disagrees with White’s take and is confident he can prove that statement to be false.
“They way I look at it, I’m the best heavyweight in the world,” Aspinall said on the “Belive You Me” podcast with Michael Bisping and Anthony Smith. “I’m not getting my credit for it. They’re holding the belt hostage, mate, and Jon Jones is loving it. He’s loving the fact that Dana is getting on every interview possible … you’re talking about bantamweights, and Dana White flips it and starts talking about how good Jon Jones is. I’m like, ‘Mate, if he’s that good, let’s fight.’
“I’m the No. 1 heavyweight right now. Let’s put it on the line, and let’s see who the man is – me or Jon. It’s as simple as that.”
There’s been plenty of controversy about the handling of the UFC’s heavyweight division during the past year. Jones, who won the UFC heavyweight title vacated by Francis Ngannou in March 2023, has yet to defend it. He was supposed to return last November against Stipe Miocic, but he suffered an injury and has been out ever since. Meanwhile, Aspinall won the UFC interim title against Sergei Pavlovich and defended it in July against Curtis Blaydes.
And yet, Jones is expected to defend his in November against Miocic, who hasn’t fought since 2021, rather than unify with Aspinall. This is what Jones has preferred all along.
“Jon Jones, he was praying that I would lose that fight against Curtis Blaydes, praying that I would because there’s no way that you find publicly, nowhere, him saying that he would fight me,” Aspinall said. “It doesn’t exist. I challenge everyone watching this interview to find a statement, a quote, a video where Jon Jones is saying that he’ll fight me after he fights Stipe. It doesn’t exist. The guy is smart.
“We know he’s a bit overweight these days. The guy sat there with the Cheetos fingers or whatever, the Doritos fingers with his iPhone in his hand, waiting for me to get knocked out so he can start tweeting about it. Let’s be honest: Since I won that fight, he’s been completely silent and continues to go completely quiet about me because there’s no way on earth that he’s going to fight me. I’ll retire Jon Jones without even fighting him.”
