"Jon Jones gonna disappear" - Dana White comments on status of Tom Aspinall fight after UFC 309, compares 'Bones' to Elon Musk
Dana White has provided an update on the potential matchup between Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall. Jon Jones solidified his heavyweight reign at UFC 309 on Nov. 16, defeating Stipe Miocic in a decisive performance.
While fans speculated about retirement, Jones announced his future plans during his post-fight interview, emphasizing upcoming negotiations with UFC executives and promising a fight announcement soon.
Despite calls for a title unification bout with interim champion Tom Aspinall, Jones has been hesitant to commit to the fight. Aspinall, who earned the interim title with a dominant performance over Sergei Pavlovich, has publicly expressed his desire to face Jones.
However, Jones has suggested that Aspinall's resume isn't yet worthy of a title shot.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding Jones' next fight, UFC CEO Dana White is confident that a deal will eventually be reached. He expressed optimism about a potential Jones vs. Aspinall matchup, describing it as a historic heavyweight clash.
However, he acknowledged Jones’ enigmatic nature:
“You let Jon do Jon. Jon’s gonna disappear. Not only will you not hear about him or what he is doing [but] neither will I. And then he will resurface and then we’ll call and will get it done.”
Speaking of his performance at UFC 309, White compared Jones’ fight IQ to Elon Musk, praising his brilliance in the octagon:
“[Jon Jones] has the highest fight IQ. He’s like f***ing Elon Musk in the octagon. This guy is brilliant and the things that he pulls off… like you did not see any of the spinning elbows that he does normally. He did all different sh*t tonight.”
When Jon Jones explained his preference for Alex Pereira over Tom Aspinall
Jon Jones addressed the growing discourse surrounding a potential unification bout with the interim heavyweight champion, Tom Aspinall.
However, Jones has refuted this notion in favor of facing Alex Pereira, the light heavyweight champion. During a media day for UFC 309, Jones explained why he believes Pereira is a more worthy opponent than Aspinall. He said:
"Alex Pereira is the only fight, right now, that makes sense to my legacy...At the end of the day, Pereira is worth risking it for me...He [Aspinall] just doesn't have the titles. He can have the high finishing rate, but he doesn't have titles. It only makes sense to fight someone on your level and Tom Aspinall and Alex Pereira are not on the same level.."
Check out Jon Jones' comments here (1:40):