Last year, Jon Jones made a solid return after a 3-year hiatus from the company. However, after claiming the heavyweight championship with his win over Ciryl Gane just before his next fight against Stipe Miočić at UFC 296, ‘Bones’ got injured. And since Jones has been out of the UFC, he has faced accusations of ducking fights with Tom Aspinall, who became the interim champion in his absence. Finally, Jones shed light on the matter on Instagram, in a way Aspinall would not want.
It seems Jones became frustrated after seeing a TikTok video. In the video, Aspinall used an aging filter on his face while captioning the video, “Waiting for Jon Jones like.” Soon after, Jones shared a video (now deleted) with a fiery response, questioning Aspinall about why he is suggesting as if Jones is ducking him, despite being injured and having already hinted at retirement before Aspinall fought Sergei Pavlovich and won the championship. He stated:
“I’m over here fresh off the operation table and you’re making tags on the Internet, framing yourself as if I’m running from you. Even though I announced potentially retired before you beat Sergei. Bro I became champion before you were 18 years old. I’ve been here for years. I don’t know where you’ve been this whole time but I have always been here.”
Jones added that up until now, Aspinall hasn’t done anything that makes him a big fighter. He also stated that till now, Aspinall has only beaten two notable names, Andrei Arlovski when he was 42, and Sergei Pavlovich. Jones further advised him to sit down and give a thought about creating his own legacy.
Indeed, seeing the statement and response, it seems it hit the wrong spot, making Jones furious. Now, it will be interesting to see when he’ll make a comeback; will he fight Aspinall or not?
Given the fact that he is the champion, the British fighter will definitely have the opportunity to fight him for the championship belt. For now, Stipe Miočić has instructed Aspinall to stand in line.
Stipe Miočić Tells Tom Aspinall to Wait the Turn for ‘Jon Jones Title Fight’ Amid Interim Champion’s Calls
Miočić, recently took to Platform X (formerly known as Twitter) to respond to Aspinall’s arguments. Miočić clarified that he wasn’t the one causing the delay in the fight against Jon Jones, which was originally scheduled for UFC 295.
“I have never caused a delay in the Jon fight. Tom, once I get this win, let’s talk to unify the belt.”
Aspinall, frustrated with UFC for not booking him against Jones for title unification, speculated that Miočić vs. Jones will be next, despite Miočić’s inactivity. After which, the 41-year-old expressed his interest in unifying the heavyweight title after a potential Jones fight. Till then he has suggested Aspinall to wait for his turn.
