Tom Aspinall gets honest on possibly facing Jon Jones or Stipe Miocic at UFC 309: "I'm ready to go"
Tom Aspinall will serve as the backup fighter for the UFC 309 main event between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic, which is set to take place on Nov. 16. But the interim champion recently shared a candid admission about the likelihood of him actually facing either Jones or Miocic.
'Bones' was previously scheduled to defend the heavyweight title against Miocic at UFC 295 in November 2023. But after suffering a torn pectoral tendon several weeks before fight night, the 37-year old was forced to withdraw.
Miocic was not willing to face Aspinall on short-notice for an interim title, leaving the Mancunian to fight and defeat Sergei Pavlovich for the interim belt instead.
With the Manchester native now in a position where he may be paired up against either heavyweight, he recently discussed the possibility of him actually fighting either Jones or Miocic.
During an interview with Red Corner MMA, he said this:
"Realistically I don't think it's gonna happen. But I am ready... I'm ready to go, if they want me to jump in, I can definitely jump in now. I'm on good shape, I've been preparing for it. Obviously it's difficult because I've not been preparing for one guy. But I am fit. I'm ready to go, so if they need me I will jump in."
Catch Tom Aspinall's comments below:
Tom Aspinall shares thoughts on Jon Jones training with Gordon Ryan ahead of UFC 309
Jon Jones will return to action at UFC 309 against the man widely regarded as the best heavyweight in MMA history, Stipe Miocic.
Ahead of it, the heavyweight champion has been seen training with Brazilian jiu-jitsu legend Gordon Ryan.
Ryan is viewed by many as the greatest no-gi BJJ practitioner of all-time, and his work with Jones during his training camp has not gone unnoticed by fans and pundits.
During Tom Aspinall's aforementioned interview with Red Corner MMA, he was asked for his thoughts on 'The King' working with the heavyweight champion and said:
"This is no disrespect to Gordon, but I don't know anything about pure grappling. I know the good grapplers in MMA, but as far as jiu-jitsu for jiu-jitsu, I've honestly less than zero interest in it... Grappling for MMA and grappling for grappling are two completely different things. It doesn't interest me."