Jon Jones would face "extreme disdain" from UFC fans if Tom Aspinall vs. Ciryl Gane rumors are true, says MMA analyst
Jon Jones is the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion, and Tom Aspinall, the current interim UFC heavyweight champion. 'Bones' should unify the title as per Aspinall's wishes. However, he appears to have little interest in facing the Brit.
Chael Sonnen recently claimed that Aspinall's next bout won't be against Jones. Instead, he will face Ciryl Gane in an interim title fight.
Given that Aspinall has already defended his interim title once, an extremely unusual occurrence in MMA. Analyst Luke Thomas believes fans could turn on Jones if he does not fight Aspinall.
Thomas broke down the potential saga during a recent episode of Morning Kombat. He said:
"Jon is just by fiat, and sitting around, potentially going to break the record for the longest title [heavyweight] reign [in UFC history]. And he did it against a guy who's got at best blue-belt level grappling in Ciryl Gane, and even that I think is a promotion."
He added:
"And then in the corpse of Stipe Miocic, and he might be the longest reigning champion. And then for him to bail, if that's what ends up happening in the end even after the UFC have reportedly made efforts [to pay him]... If you get to that point, I think there would be extreme disdain."
Check out Luke Thomas's comments about Jon Jones potentially not fighting Tom Aspinall below (52:10):
Jon Jones breaks record for longest reigning heavyweight champion in UFC history
Jon Jones is widely considered the greatest MMA fighter in the history of the sport. Having only lost one fight in his career, a controversial disqualification against Matt Hamill, 'Bones' has displayed unprecedented levels of longevity and domination and holds numerous UFC records including the most title victories.
On April 27, 2025, Jones saw himself secure another UFC record, as he overtook former opponent Stipe Miocic as the longest reigning heavyweight champion in promotional history, at 785 days.
A large portion of Jones' title reign was spent recovering from a torn pectoral muscle that he suffered in preparation for his clash with Miocic, which saw him sidelined for a full year. Alongside his heavyweight championship record, the New York native holds the record for the longest-reigning light heavyweight champion in UFC history at 1,501 days.
A popular MMA page on X highlighted the records via a post, captioned:
"Jon Jones is now the longest reigning heavyweight [champion] in UFC history and has now surpassed Stipe Miocic."
Check out the aforementioned post below: