Tag: Tom Aspinall

Daniel Cormier shares key takeaway from Dana White’s guarantee on Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall

Daniel Cormier thinks Dana White’s confidence UFC titles will be unified means Jon Jones got “a number big enough” to face Tom Aspinall.

[autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag] is confident the UFC heavyweight title unification bout between [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] and [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] will come to fruition in 2025.

UFC CEO Dana White recently 100 percent guaranteed that Jones (28-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC) and interim champ Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) will clash in a highly anticipated matchup next year.

If White’s confidence becomes reality and the unification bout does materialize, Cormier thinks Jones – win or lose – will retire from active competition afterward.

“(White’s comment) tells me that they’re getting it done,” Cormier told MMA Junkie. “It tells me that they’ve given Jon Jones a number big enough to get it done, because I always thought that Jones was kind of negotiating publicly. I don’t think for a second he’s afraid of anyone. I think that he was kind of going, ‘I want a number so big that I’m going to ride off into the sunset and be done.’

“But he’s also kind of laying the foundation for people to recognize that it’s almost over. He’s about done, right? So, start getting ready for life after Jon Jones because I do believe that he’s laid the foundation for a massive payday, but what will be his final payday. I don’t think he’ll be a guy that if he gets beat, or if the fights get more competitive, will just stick around trying to make money.”

Although it’s rare for White to speak publicly about an unannounced matchup with the confidence he did when discussing Jones vs. Aspinall, nothing is official as of yet. The details when it comes to date and location are still unconfirmed, and until that is sorted, a degree of uncertainty will exist.

Cormier has faith White’s words will prove accurate, though, and thinks it would be in Jones’ best interest to schedule things for the nearest available date.

“He (White) would say that if he feels like they’re getting close or it’s done,” Cormier said. “I would probably think to the summer. If I was Jon Jones, I would do this earlier than later because every month that passes, he just gets older, and Tom Aspinall gets better. So, I would try and do this as soon as possible. I wouldn’t want to wait until New York next year, where he’s almost 38, 39 years old with that kid just continuing to improve.”

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Curtis Blaydes can envision Tom Aspinall finishing UFC champ Jon Jones early

Curtis Blaydes sees Tom Aspinall being the first fighter to take out UFC champ Jon Jones.

[autotag]Curtis Blaydes[/autotag] sees [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] being the first to take out UFC heavyweight champion [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag].

UFC CEO Dana White guaranteed that the title-unification bout between interim champ Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) and heavyweight champ Jones (28-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC) will happen in 2025.

Aspinall has torn through the heavyweight ranks en route to claiming the interim title and successfully defended it when he needed just one minute to stop Blaydes by knockout at UFC 304.

Blaydes (18-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC) thinks Aspinall can do the same to Jones.

“I would pick him (Aspinall),” Blaydes said in an interview with Sportskeeda. “Like, I would go 55 percent him. Obviously, it’s not going to be a landslide. Like, we’re going against Jon Jones. He’s a legend. He’s got all the weapons. I think one area where Tom can win is just a presence inside. Like, Jon Jones gets away with being able to stand in front of his opponent and just paw and pick at him with the inside leg kicks and the teeps and the jabs. I don’t think Aspinall is just going to allow him to hang out at that range.

“I think he’s going to be blitzing him in and out, and that’ll be the difference. I think in one of those ins and outs, he’s going to be able to catch him, because it only takes one. He definitely has the speed. He doesn’t have the range that Jon has, but who does? But I think he knows that. I think he’ll get on the inside of that range, and I think he’ll be able to land an overhand. And it’ll probably be early because he likes to blitz. He doesn’t like to wait. So yeah, I think it’ll happen early.”

Jones notched his first title defense when he stopped Stipe Miocic by Round 3 TKO at UFC 309. He said he’d need “f*ck you” money to consider facing Aspinall, and it appears the UFC is actively working on making the fight happen.

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Video: Is Dana White’s guarantee on Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall good as gold?

How confident are we in Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall happening after Dana White’s guarantee? We discuss on “Spinning Back Clique.”

It’s not signed, but things might be looking good for those hoping to see the UFC heavyweight championship unified in 2025.

This past Saturday, following the conclusion of UFC on ESPN 63 in Tampa, Fla., UFC CEO Dana White told MMA Junkie that he “100 percent” guarantees that all-time great and UFC heavyweight champion [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] will take on interim heavyweight champ [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] in 2025. White also assured that this would be the biggest heavyweight fight in UFC history, along with one of the biggest fights the company has ever put on.

What do we make of White’s confidence in putting together this highly-anticipated bout together? What exactly would be the magnitude?

MMA Junkie’s Brian “Goze” Garcia, Mike Bohn, Danny Segura and host “Gorgeous” George react to White’s bold comments.

Watch their discussion in the video above, and don’t miss this week’s complete episode of “Spinning Back Clique” below on YouTube.

https://youtube.com/live/QvKtS8RXBbs

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Dana White guarantees Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall happens in 2025: ‘I’ll say 100 percent’

Dana White is not one to make guarantees when it comes to matchmaking, but he has made an exception for Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall.

TAMPA, Fla. – UFC CEO [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] is not one to make guarantees when it comes to unconfirmed matchmaking, but [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] is an exception.

The much-desired heavyweight title unification bout between champ Jones (28-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC) and interim titleholder Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) has been in limbo as “Bones” teases retirement and dismissed a matchup with the Brit.

White expressed confidence that the fight would happen following Jones’ title defense against Stipe Miocic in November, and when asked at Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 63 post-fight news conference if he can be certain it would happen, White gave a definitive answer.

“I’ll say 100 percent (the fight happens),” White told MMA Junkie. “I think it’s probably the biggest fight in heavyweight history, and it’s a massive fight in the history of the company, too. It’s a big fight.”

Although Jones appears to be putting on a front that he has no interest in Aspinall, White said his experience talking to the man he regards as the greatest of all time is different in private.

“It’s weird,” White said. “What’s weird about that, let me tell you what’s weird about that: So usually guys say that sh*t behind the scenes and not publicly. Jon says that sh*t publicly but not behind the scenes. Jon is a very unique individual to deal with. From Day 1, I’ve been confident that Jon Jones would do that fight. Even before the fight (with Miocic), I said Jon will do this fight. Jon Jones isn’t afraid to fight anybody, and that’s a fact.

“The only time that anything remotely weird has happened with Jon Jones is the time that his f*cking camp did the weird Chael Sonnen thing, ‘We can’t fight Chael Sonnen on short notice.’ and that wasn’t him. It was his team, and he listened to his team for whatever reason. But that’s like the goofiest f*cking move in the history of the UFC. But other than that, Jon Jones is not a guy that, behind the scenes, turns down fights.”

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Tom Aspinall reveals what Dana White told him backstage immediately after UFC 309

Tom Aspinall and Dana White met immediately after UFC 309 – and what the UFC boss told the interim heavyweight champ has him excited.

[autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] was caught off guard by his post-UFC 309 meeting with promotion president Dana White in New York.

Recently a guest on “Piers Morgan Uncensored,” Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) revealed he spoke with White following the conclusion of the Nov. 16 post-fight news conference. His expectation was to have some light negotiation about a potential [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] unification bout, but instead, he was immediately greeted with a confident statement from White.

“Actually, right after that press conference, I had a meeting with Dana,” Aspinall said. “So, in all honesty, I was expecting to come and maybe we negotiate a little bit. He literally walks into the room and said, ‘It’s happening.’ I said, ‘Well, he’s going to want loads of money.’ He said, ‘I know, but it’s happening.’ And he said, ‘It’s going to be the biggest fight in UFC history.'”

So, has Jones (28-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) agreed to fight Aspinall already? Jones has remained largely mum on the topic since his TKO win over Stipe Miocic. Aspinall isn’t sure, but thinks the UFC will break out the big bucks to make it happen.

“I don’t know,” Aspinall said. “In all honesty, Jon Jones is like… nobody knows what he’s doing, even the UFC. I don’t know. … I would imagine so. I would imagine so. I can’t speak for Dana.”

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Aspinall doesn’t expect to make the same money Jones will should the fight happen. But according to him, he’s prioritizing a different kind of prize.

“No, no,” Aspinall said. “I don’t really care about money at this point. Obviously, I’ve got a family. I want to make as much money as I can. But to me, what’s more important is unifying belts.”

Tom Aspinall breaks down Ciryl Gane vs. Alexander Volkov at UFC 310

Interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall could be looking at his future opponent from UFC 310.

Interim heavyweight champion [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] could be looking at his future opponent from UFC 310.

[autotag]Ciryl Gane[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 9-2 UFC) runs things back with [autotag]Alexander Volkov[/autotag] (38-10 MMA, 6-3 UFC) in Saturday’s main card (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN2, Hulu, ESPN+) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) is currently gunning for a title-unification bout with heavyweight champion Jon Jones, but if he doesn’t get his wish, he could end up facing the winner of Gane vs. Volkov. Aspinall broke down the key factors of the pivotal heavyweight clash.

“The feet are very important in this fight in my opinion,” Aspinall told TNT Sports. “When I say the feet, I’m not talking about the kicking as such – I’m talking about the positioning of their feet. If Volkov can get him going backwards and keep him against the fence, he can just use that length and tee off on him with the kicks and the punches like we’re seeing there.

“On the contrary to that, Ciryl Gane is really good moving backwards – that’s his strength, is he lures his opponents in and moves off on them angles. So it’s just an interesting matchup of styles, and we love heavyweight fights.”

Gane won his first meeting with Volkov in June 2021 by unanimous decision – a fight Aspinall thinks was lackluster.

“Stinker … terrible fight,” Aspinall said. “No one remembers it. Nothing really happened in the fight. It was just a lot of clinching up against the fence – not a lot of great damage done.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

Alexander Volkov: Jon Jones ‘cut the line’ to UFC title, Tom Aspinall had more honest path

Alexander Volkov thinks Tom Aspinall earned his way to UFC gold more than Jon Jones did.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Alexander Volkov[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] earned his way to UFC gold more than [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] did.

Jones (28-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC) claimed the vacant heavyweight title when he returned from an over three-year long layoff to submit Ciryl Gane at UFC 285. Last month at UFC 309, Jones successfully defended his title with a TKO of Stipe Miocic.

Meanwhile, Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) quickly knocked out Sergei Pavlovich to become interim heavyweight champion at UFC 295. He has since defended his belt with a first-round TKO of Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304.

Based on their resumes at heavyweight, Volkov (38-10 MMA, 6-3 UFC) sees Aspinall as the more credible champion.

“In my opinion, Tom is more deserving of the champion belt in heavyweight than Jon Jones,” Volkov told MMA Junkie and other reporters at Wednesday’s UFC 310 media day. “I can’t say Jon Jones is a bad fighter or he can’t beat Tom Aspinall or something. But the way Tom Aspinall got exactly in the heavyweight, his way to take this belt in heavyweight, it was more honest to give him this heavyweight belt.

“Jon Jones kind of cut the line, you know? He kind of went from the side, getting his first fight with Ciryl Gane for the belt, who already lost to (Francis) Ngannou. He got this belt, then defended it against the No. 6 ranked guy, who was champion, of course. Stipe Miocic is a really good fighter, but he didn’t fight for a few years. It looked more like a superfight, not a champion fight. I think Tom Aspinall deserves it more.”

Volkov will look to earn his first title shot when he runs things back with Gane (12-2 MMA, 9-2 UFC) in a pivotal heavyweight clash, which takes place on Saturday’s UFC 310 main card (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN2, Hulu, ESPN+) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

UFC champ Jon Jones’ coach brushes off Tom Aspinall as serious threat

Is Jon Jones ducking a matchup with Tom Aspinall? Not according to the UFC heavyweight champ’s coach, Brandon Gibson.

UFC heavyweight champion [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag]’ coach [autotag]Brandon Gibson[/autotag] is confident his fighter would take care of business inside the octagon against interim champ [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag].

Gibson has been alongside Jones (28-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC) for the entirety of Jones’ run atop two divisions in the UFC. From their perspective, Jones, 37, is done showing and proving. Now, it’s about getting the most out of the game before calling it a career. According to Gibson, it has nothing to do with Jones being a “duck” and avoiding a matchup against Aspinall.

“I think it’s about timing,” Gibson told Din Thomas and Alan Jouban on SiriusXM Fight Nation. “I think it’s about getting the most out of this fight game. I’ve been in it for a long time, as I know you guys have, and it’s not always a fair game. People don’t always get what they deserve in this game.

“I think Jon’s in a powerful position right now to really hold the cards in his favor and make sure that he gets out of it what he wants.”

Year after year, there’s another contender who pops up as a legitimate threat to Jones’ title. Gibson believes Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) is not too different from every challenger who tried and failed to knock Jones off in the past.

Despite Jones stating he has a higher interest in facing light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira over a title unification bout against Aspinall, Gibson says that has nothing to do with worrying about how that fight would play out. Even with limited game film on Aspinall, Gibson is confident Jones would win the fight, it just has to make sense for them from a business perspective.

“I think the fans want that from a lineal standpoint,” Gibson said. “You want to see the belt get passed, not just a belt get vacated. But I always tell Jon like, ‘Dude, you don’t owe anybody anything.’ We owed Stipe Miocic and the UFC that night on Nov. 16. That’s what we owed. We’ll see if negotiations can get done right, but Jon’s not ducking anybody.

“I actually think Jon is a tough matchup for Tom Aspinall. Obviously, we haven’t seen Tom with an average fight time of two and a half minutes – we haven’t see much out of Tom, but that’s also a positive on our part. Jon is great at taking champion-level caliber fighters into deep waters. Jon is great in that fourth round and that fifth round. It’s not a matchup that scares us at all. It’s a matter of what’s best for Jon and his family.”

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UFC 310’s Ciryl Gane says he was willing to fight Tom Aspinall in March

Ciryl Gane reveals he was game to fight Tom Aspinall earlier this year.

[autotag]Ciryl Gane[/autotag] revealed he was game to fight [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] earlier this year.

UFC interim heavyweight champion Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) claimed Gane turned him down for a title fight at UFC 304 in July. The Brit wound up facing Curtis Blaydes instead, stopping him by Round 1 TKO to retain his belt.

Fernand Lopez confirmed Gane (12-2 MMA, 9-2 UFC) did indeed turn Aspinall down for UFC 304, but only because he had already committed to filming a movie with Netflix – something the UFC was well aware of. Gane, however, says there was no fight offer for September, and that Aspinall in fact turned him down for a fight in March.

“Yeah, yeah, of course, for March – but it was not possible. He said I refused him in September, but the UFC didn’t propose me any contract with him (for then),” Gane said on “The Ariel Helwani Show.”

“Like I’ve said, I’m looking for the best for me and every time is in front of me, and this is exactly what he’s doing now – just looking in front of him. I didn’t (call him out) on the social media, but the UFC knew this is a fight that we’re looking for.”

Gane thinks a fight with Aspinall down the line is inevitable, but first, he has to get through Alexander Volkov (38-10 MMA, 6-3 UFC) in Saturday’s UFC 310 (pay-per-view, ESPN2, ESPN+) main card at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Aspinall is gunning for a title-unification bout with heavyweight champion Jon Jones, who would rather face light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira.

Gane sees Aspinall being a bigger threat to Jones than “Poatan.”

“Every time we see for the fight against Stipe (Miocic), everything was possible because Stipe is a really great fighter, really well-rounded, but he proved it another time,” Gane said of Jones. “He’s so dangerous. He’s capable of changing. He can do (anything he) wants.

“So even if you have a guy really good in his striking or the wrestling, he can manage this. Maybe I’m going to say Tom because he’s more well-rounded. When you have a guy like Alex Pereira, he’s so dangerous on the striking, so everything is possible. It’s too hard to have a good answer.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

Chael Sonnen: ‘It’s basically retire or fight Tom Aspinall’ for Jon Jones

Chael Sonnen is confident Jon Jones fights Tom Aspinall.

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] is confident [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] fights [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag].

Heavyweight champion Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) continued to dismiss interim champion Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) after he retained his belt with a TKO of Stipe Miocic at UFC 309.

Jones provided a positive update about his fighting future, but with Aspinall still the interim champion, Sonnen says that can only mean one thing.

“The UFC isn’t without leverage here,” Sonnen said on “Good Guy/Bad Guy” with Daniel Cormier. “If they’ve kept the belt around Tom, it’s to let Jon know, ‘It’s no problem to pull that one off your waist. We’ve got another one sitting right over here. We’ve got world champions – they’re real easy to make over here at the UFC.'”

UFC CEO Dana White shut down Jones’ ambition to fight light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, which gives Sonnen even more confidence that it’s Aspinall or bust for Jones – even though Jones isn’t sold on fighting Aspinall.

“I’ll let you know what UFC stands – Jon has two choices: You fight Tom or you do not fight,” Sonnen said. “There is nobody else is going to be offered. In fact, we’ve got a name that came off the board (of possibilities) in terms of Alex Pereira.

“Dana put that to absolute rest, and when the oddsmakers put it as a 6-to-1 spread favoring Jones, that fight is gone. So Jon can sit out and not fight – that’s true. But he’s not going to be in a spot where he could fight someone else. It’s basically retire, (or) it’s fight Tom Aspinall.”

Jones recently posted a series of tweets in which he addressed the potential circumstances if he decides to retire. He continued to stick by his words of an Aspinall fight not adding anything to his legacy.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DC8ZzqmxTp5/?img_index=1

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