Dricus du Plessis makes surprising admission about Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall: “It's very hard to say this"
Jon Jones will face Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 after more than a year on the sidelines due to injury. Many fans wished that interim champion Tom Aspinall was the man scheduled to face 'Bones' instead of Miocic, but not Dricus du Plessis.
Jones and Miocic were first set to fight at UFC 295 in November 2023 before an injury suffered several weeks before the bout saw the heavyweight champion ruled out.
Aspinall and Sergei Pavlovich replaced the original pairing and went to war for an interim title, which was won by the Mancunian. Since his title win, the 31-year old has called for a clash with 'Bones', with the American quashing those demands in favor of a "legacy" fight with Miocic.
Despite plenty of fans accusing Jones of ducking Aspinall and hoping to see the pair clash, Du Plessis explained why he has not interest in seeing them fight. 'Stillknocks' was recently interviewed by Shakiel Mahjouri and shared:
"There's one fight I don't need to see. It's very hard to say this publicly, but I don't need to see Tom Aspinall vs. Jon Jones. I love both of them, Tom Aspinall is such an awesome guy. I met Jones quickly, amazing. Massive guy, for me, that I look up to as a martial artist... I look up to Tom Aspinall so much. I just don't need to see that fight. For me, it's a lose-lose situation."
Catch Dricus du Plessis' comments below (33:00):
Jon Jones wants Alex Pereira over Tom Aspinall for "legacy"
Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall have gone back-and-forth online numerous times, with the interim champion being of the belief that 'Bones' is avoiding a fight with him.
Given the New York native's clash with Stipe Miocic at UFC 309, there is hope from fans that should Jones be victorious, he will face Aspinall next.
But during a recent interview with Kevin Iole, the 38-year old named Alex Pereira as a potential next opponent. He explained why, saying:
"More than likely not. I feel like Tom Aspinall is, I don't want to say 'nobody' but he just hasn't proven anything. He hasn't done anything. And I understand that, I mean, he won his belt against Sergei... I'm not here to gamble someone else making a name off of me... If there were to be a fight [with] a guy that's still on the UFC roster that would be, not only financially worth it, but 'legacy' worth it, it would be Alex Pereira."
Check out Jon Jones' comments below (7:55):