UFC interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall has expressed his impatience and believes he should be the one to fight Jon Jones instead of Stipe Miocic, arguing that he is the best right now and should have the opportunity to prove it.
Tom Aspinall’s got a bone to pick. He reckons he should be the one squaring off against Jon Jones, not Stipe Miocic.
Back in November, Jones was all set to defend his heavyweight title against Miocic at UFC 295. But then, injury struck. Jones was out, and Aspinall was in. He was up against Sergei Pavlovich for an interim title, a last-minute switcheroo.
Aspinall didn’t disappoint. He snagged the interim belt with a knockout in just 69 seconds. The UFC seems to be sticking to the original plan, though, with Jones defending against Miocic. But Aspinall? He’s getting antsy.
Last Thursday, he took to social media. He’s not happy about Miocic getting a shot at the title after such a long hiatus.
To back up his point, he brought up Alex Pereira. The UFC light heavyweight champ first fought for the promotion in November 2021, a good eight months after Miocic’s last fight. Since then, Pereira’s been busy, fighting seven times and winning both the UFC light heavyweight and middleweight titles.
But Aspinall didn’t stop there. Even though the UFC hasn’t officially announced a Jones-Miocic fight, UFC CEO Dana White has made it clear. Aspinall won’t get a shot at either Jones or Miocic next. And Aspinall? He’s not pleased, to say the least.
He tweeted, “Surely if you’re interim champ, your next fight should be to fight for undisputed? Come on.” He also added, “Stipe is one of my favorites. Loads of respect to him his résumé is far superior to mine rn. That being said the UFC has never been about this. It’s about who’s the best right now, and I believe that’s me and it’s only right I get to prove it #freeaspinall.”
Miocic is widely considered the most accomplished heavyweight in UFC history. But he hasn’t fought since getting knocked out by Francis Ngannou in March 2021. He doesn’t hold any wins over currently ranked UFC heavyweights. Aspinall, on the other hand, has four wins over currently ranked top-10 heavyweights, all by first-round finish.
This isn’t the first time Aspinall’s voiced his frustrations. After winning the title, he suggested Jones should be stripped of his belt due to injury, something that’s happened to several recent champs. Jones didn’t take kindly to the idea, and for now, it looks like he’s still set on facing Miocic sometime in 2024.