Tom Aspinall responds to Jon Jones's taunts, says he aims for a good payday and title win: "I want to make as much money as I can"
Tom Aspinall last entered the octagon in July when he successfully defended his interim heavyweight title for the first time, defeating Curtis Blaydes via first-round knockout at UFC 304. Despite his angling for an undisputed title opportunity, the promotion opted to have Jon Jones face Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 in a bout that has been nearly a year and a half in the making.
'Bones' has hinted that the bout will mark the final appearance of his mixed martial arts career. Speaking to Ariel Helwani on his new self-titled show, the No. 1-ranked heavyweight was asked about the heavyweight champion's retirement talks, responding:
"I have no idea. The guy is a little bit weird to me... We're talking about Jon. It's pretty obvious. There's been some stuff that he's done over the years that isn't normal behavior."
When asked about Jones' claims that Aspinall will not be able to match him in title bout wins, he responded:
"I don't want to win as many championships as him. I just want to be the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world. That's all... Don't care [about breaking Jones' record]. I want to make as much money as I can in the shortest amount of time possible and then bounce and do something else. And I want to get out of this sport healthy so once I've done what I want to do, I'll be done. I've got no interest in being the best heavyweight ever."
Check out Tom Aspinall's comments on Jon Jones below (26:25):
It is unclear if Jones will retire after facing Miocic or if he will face Aspinall. The interim heavyweight champion has shared that he believes the winner of the UFC 310 bout between Ciryl Gane and Alexander Volkov will be his next opponent if the winner of the UFC 309 title bout retires.
Tom Aspinall weighs in on Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic
Tom Aspinall recently shared his thoughts on the upcoming UFC 309 heavyweight title bout between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic. During a recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, the interim heavyweight champion stated:
"I would edge towards Jon, of course, just because he's younger and he's a little fresher than Stipe. Stipe, let's be honest, we don't really know where he's at. He's definitely the best heavyweight of all-time. He's also like 42 years old, 43 years old. His last fight, he got knocked out, which was like three or four years ago now. We have no idea what he's going to look like."
Check out Tom Aspinall's comments on Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic below:
Aspinall added that Jones has fought recently and looked good in his first-round submission victory over Ciryl Gane at UFC 285. He noted that he would give 'Bones' a 60 percent chance of retaining the heavyweight title.