Interim UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall is determined to inject activity back into the division, declaring his intention to compete frequently in 2024.
The prolonged saga surrounding the UFC heavyweight title involving Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall appears to be reaching its conclusion, as the interim titleholder indicates he is no longer waiting for Jones to return.
Recently, Jones suggested that he, Aspinall, and the UFC had a pre-arranged agreement, stating the promotion would make an announcement. This led fans to anticipate news about a potential fight.
Despite this, Aspinall quickly countered, asserting that Jones has retired and that he himself already has a date for an alternative opponent.
Aspinall Declares Plan to Fight Twice This Year
Fans have expressed significant frustration with the UFC`s silence regarding the potential title unification bout. They argue this delay is holding up the entire division and possibly hindering Aspinall`s career during his prime.
In response, the British fighter has formally decided to abandon his wait for Jones`s comeback and announced his plan to fight twice in 2024, aiming to revitalize the heavyweight landscape.
“I’m sick of talking about myself, I mean, I think it’s pretty clear to see that Jon Jones has retired, he doesn’t want to fight me. We wish Jon all the best in the future, of course, but we want this heavyweight division active. We want to give these contenders a chance to fight, we wanna have a defending champion, don’t we? Why is this division so stagnant all the time? Let’s make the heavyweight division great again and have an active defending UFC heavyweight champion, let’s move on.”
“I’m ready to fight, I wanna get two fights in before the end of the year so that’s what we’re doing. We finally have some movement, Jones has had a great career, I respect him, we know what he’s done… Have a good life, we move on.”
— Tom Aspinall told TNT Sports
Potential Opponents for Aspinall
Ciryl Gane is currently ranked second in the heavyweight division, coming off a victory against Alexander Volkov.
A fight between Aspinall and Gane has been discussed before, but the Frenchman reportedly declined it at the time, preferring a higher-ranked opponent when Aspinall was below him in the rankings.
Additionally, Aspinall has mentioned the possibility of facing Alex Pereira in the future. Following Magomed Ankalaev`s recent claim that Pereira refused a rematch, speculation has risen among fans that `Poatan` might make a move to the heavyweight division soon.
