‘It’s stupid’ – Tom Aspinall’s dad slams Jon Jones and UFC in worrying update on title fight
Tom Aspinall has still not been awarded his UFC heavyweight title fight with Jon Jones.
And it has reached the point where frustrations are starting to mount from Aspinall's camp.
5
Briton Aspinall has been the UFC interim champion since knocking out Sergei Pavlovich in November 2023, and defended his status against Curtis Blaydes in Manchester last July.
Jones, on the other hand, has ruled Dana White's heavyweight division for over two years now, but has only defended the heavyweight title once during that time against Stipe Miocic in November.
As the No. 1 contender to Jones' belt, Aspinall has deservedly been named the man who will unify the heavyweight division against the American MMA legend.
UFC CEO White has asserted several times that the fight will happen, but there are still no signs of progress, despite the desperate calls of MMA fans for the promotion to get a move on.
READ MORE UFC
This has led to Aspinall's father, Andy, giving some pretty strong words to Jones and the UFC.
“It's stupid," he explained when asked about fans' frustrations with his son.
"I have no idea the reason why the UFC don't really want Tom to fight anybody else other than Jon Jones.
“They’re saying, 'Stay tuned.' That's the message they wanted Tom to give out to people...we had the meeting with Hunter [Campbell] (UFC CBO) and they’re going to try and fix the fight with Jon Jones.
Most read in MMA
“We’re in April now, still waiting for [Jones] to say, ‘I’ll have a fight,’ or ‘I’ll not have a fight.’
"And I don't really understand that. He's a fighter who should be having fights. Why is [Jones] still sitting around not giving an answer as to whether he's going to fight or not?"
5
5
Aspinall has finished all but one of his eight UFC victories in the first round en route to the promotion's heavyweight summit.
In doing so, the Mancunian has smashed the record for the shortest average fight time in the promotion.
His father believes there's no other fight next for Aspinall than a unification bout with Jones.
"Tom’s done all he can do, he's fought in the middle of the night to defend an interim, he fought for an interim…and he won that, what else can he do?" Andy said.
"He can fight lesser-ranked people than Jon Jones, but that means he may miss the opportunity to fight Jon Jones, which is massive because he's the champion and the best there's ever been.
"If Tom beats him that's great, but what other choice does he have?It's all a bit funny to me."
5
5
Aspinall, himself, looked understandably frustrated, as he added: “We want some fight news…I'm training twice a day…I'm doing everything that an elite athlete does every day without the competition, and that part has nothing to do with me.”
White was asked about the ongoing negotiations when the UFC returned to Kansas City this past weekend.
He said: "Everything you hear is bulls*** until we say it. I've said it many times, that's the fight we want to make this year," before adding that he was 'still super confident' the bout would take place.
Nonetheless, it seems like Aspinall's camp are getting more and more frustrated as time ticks on.
Aspinall does not want to end up in a situation like Michael Chandler, who sidelined himself for years to fight Conor McGregor, and when it was confirmed for June 2024 the latter pulled out with an injury.
Read More on talkSPORT
Several MMA fans believe the UFC must make the fight, or it will be a failure on their behalf, while British MMA icon Michael Bisping told talkSPORT in March that Jones must 'hurry up, or retire' when asked about the situation.
UFC Hall of Famer Chael Sonnen claims Jon Jones vs Tom Aspinall ‘is done’
If Jones does leave the sport before fighting Aspinall, it is likely the Englishman would find himself up against Ciryl Gane for unified status in his next fight.
Topics