Interim UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall recently took a jab at UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones, claiming Jones is no longer the true champion, despite the UFC still listing him as the man to beat in the division.
Some in the MMA community have criticized Jones, who has recently been involved as a coach on ALF Reality, a Russian MMA reality show. Fans have pointed out that the UFC heavyweight division is being held up due to Jones’ apparent disinterest in a title unification bout against Aspinall.
Aspinall, who has repeatedly accused Jones of avoiding him, now claims that “politics” at the highest levels of the UFC are delaying progress in the 265-pound division.
Tom Aspinall Blames the UFC Heavyweight Division’s Condition on ‘Politics’ at the UFC’s Top Level
UFC lightweight contender Paddy “The Baddy” Pimblett recently visited Aspinall and trained with him at the gym. The two British fighters expressed mutual respect while honing their striking, grappling, and overall MMA skills.
In a video posted to Pimblett’s YouTube channel, they discussed the widely speculated idea that Jones has effectively retired from MMA. Aspinall, who has publicly declared himself the true heavyweight kingpin, hinted that his dream matchup with the UFC legend may not happen. He said, “Everybody reaches a sell-by date, don’t they? Everybody’s got a time limit. He’s reached it, and we move on.”
Pimblett chimed in, suggesting Aspinall was probably tired of being asked about the Jones matchup all the time. The heavyweight stalwart seemed to agree but then indicated he recently got a clearer picture of when he’ll be able to fight.
Hinting at a return to the Octagon soon, Aspinall said, “It’s better now ’cause I do know what’s going on a little bit. I am going to fight soon. So that’s nice. But throughout the last six months, I’ve just not known what’s going on.”
The two then criticized Jones, suggesting that “Bones” is stalling the division despite having a clear No. 1 contender in Aspinall. Responding to Pimblett’s comment, Aspinall agreed and blamed upper-level UFC politics for the delays. The interim champ said, “It is crazy. It is a crazy situation. But there’s a lot of politics in the UFC at the top levels. And it’s out of my hands. So there’s nothing I can really do about it.”
Earlier this month, former UFC heavyweight champion and current PFL Super Fights heavyweight champ Francis Ngannou expressed interest in fighting Jones. Jones responded, saying Ngannou is an intriguing matchup. However, UFC CEO Dana White has clarified that the organization still intends to book Jones against Aspinall.