UFC CEO [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] has changed his tune on booking [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] – kind of.
Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) has claimed prior to Saturday’s heavyweight title defense against Stipe Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC) at UFC 309 that, if he successful, he will not unify belts with interim champion [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag]. Instead he wants reigning light heavyweight titleholder Alex Pereira, who he said is the only matchup that would keep him from retirement.
White already has voiced his dismay for those comments, saying he will not make the Jones vs. Pereira fight next and “Bones” has the option to either retire or unify with Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC). He stands behind that, but thinks there is a compromise that could be made to satisfy everyone involved.
“Obviously a guy like Jon Jones has had a career where, if he wants something we would do it,” White said on The Pat McAfee Show. “But you can’t just do a fun fight and not fight the interim heavyweight champion, the guy who is next – because if Jon Jones retired on Saturday, Tom Aspinall would be the heavyweight champion.
“Opportunities were given to Jon Jones. He was 23, he was the youngest champion of all time. Now, as he sits where he sits, it’s his obligation to give it to the younger guy to give him that opportunity. If he beats Tom Aspinall, then yes, I would do the Alex Pereira fight.”
It remains to be seen if Jones will be open to taking on Aspinall. He said at UFC 309 that the Brit was “an asshole” and he doesn’t want to do business with him.
UFC 309 takes place at Madison Square Garden. The main card airs on ESPN+ pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and ESPN+.
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.