Although Tom Aspinall has been vying for a title unification bout against heavyweight champion Jon Jones for quite some time now, the UFC has shown him a cold shoulder. Having been there, #2 ranked welterweight, Belal Muhammad exactly knows how it feels, and he even offered his sympathies to the Brit ahead of his title fight at UFC 304.
In an exclusive interview with the SHAK MMA YouTube channel, the Palestinian-American weighed in with his thoughts on Aspinall’s path to the title. Having been in his shoes, as the UFC denied him a title shot for years, Muhammad felt sorry for the interim heavyweight champ. He even claimed that Aspinall has proved himself enough for the promotion to give him a chance, and mentioned how Dana White’s stance on a title unification bout has put a question mark on the British fighter’s future, saying,
“He just beat Pavlovich who everybody thought was going to be the next biggest thing and now Curtis Blaydes…He’s not an easy fight for anybody. And he is going to have to go through him next and then you never even know if you’re going to get that red panty night with Jon Jones.”
Despite Aspinall trying his best to land a big money fight against Jones, White refused to honor the Brit’s request. As a result, the 31 year old is currently scheduled to face his former foe, Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304 as the co-main event fight.
However, many, including Michael Bisping are now convinced of Aspinall’s abilities, and believe that the Brit would be the clear winner if Jones agrees to fight him.
Tom over Jones – Bisping picks his side
For a lot of fans out there, Jones is simply the best there is to MMA. In fact, having witnessed his uniqueness inside the cage, even White has put ‘Bones’ on a pedestal. However, UFC commentator and zealous Englishman, Michael Bisping thinks otherwise. Speaking to Sean O’Malley and his co-host/coach Tim Welch on YouTube, Bisping offered his take, picking Tom over Jon.
In fact, Bisping believes that there will be a clear winner if Jones does end up taking on Aspinall in his next fight, as he said,
“I think Jon Jones loses to Tom without a shadow of a doubt. But maybe I’m wrong.”
While ‘The Count’ is well aware of Jones’ brilliance, he recognized his countryman’s zeal and did not shy away from making a bold prediction.
