Sean O'Malley and Tim Welch ponder upon if Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall will be the biggest PPV of all time: "Too easy to do it for free"
Sean O'Malley and his coach, Tim Welch, discussed the earning potential of the Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall fight. Jones secured his first heavyweight title defense with a third-round KO of Stipe Miocic at UFC 309. A title unification bout with interim champion Tom Aspinall seems likely next.
On the TimboSugarShow podcast aired on Nov. 26, O'Malley and coach Welch discussed whether the pay-per-view event headlined by Jones vs. Aspinall could break previous sales records. Comparing the fight with the recent Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson boxing match, O'Malley said:
"I don't think it's going to hit anywhere near Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul."
Welch replied:
"Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall won't be the biggest pay-per-view of all time. Dude, nowadays, how many people are going to stream it?"
O'Malley further stated that Jones vs. Aspinall could potentially be the highest-selling pay-per-view event of the last five years but may not get close to breaking the all-time record, saying:
"It's not going to be bigger than Conor vs. Floyd. Most people don't buy pay-per-views... It's too expensive. [Lowering the pay-per-view] price is not the issue. It's just that it's too easy to do it for free."
Check out Sean O'Malley's comments below (10:43):
For reference, UFC 229: Khabib vs. McGregor is the highest-grossing PPV event in UFC history. Meanwhile, McGregor's crossover boxing match against Floyd Mayweather in August 2017 is the second-highest-selling boxing PPV of all time and the highest ever involving an MMA fighter.
Jon Jones does not want to fight "dangerous up-and-comers" like Tom Aspinall
While social media reactions suggest massive fan interest in watching Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall, 'Bones' has shown little interest in fighting the Brit. The 37-year-old has refused to give Aspinall a shot, citing a relatively more minor track record of defeating elite competitors.
Jones reiterated his stance on the issue in the UFC 309 post-fight press conference. He added that he's more interested in fighting fellow veterans like Alex Pereira at this stage of his career:
"I feel like I'm at a place where I want to take what I find to be super-fights. I don't want to fight dangerous up-and-comers anymore. I want to fight dangerous, established champions. So Tom Aspinall could have the heavyweight championship. I don't even care about it."
Check out Jon Jones' comments below (5:17):
While 'Bones' seems adamant about fighting other veterans, Aspinall believes that he's "secretly" interested in fighting him.