UFC icon dismisses Jon Jones or Stipe Miocic potentially facing backup fighter Tom Aspinall at UFC 309: "Mark my words"
UFC interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall is determined to serve as the backup fighter for the upcoming clash between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic. Jones will put his heavyweight title on the line in the main event of UFC 309 on Nov. 16 at the Madison Square Garden, New York.
Jones' withdrawal from the originally scheduled fight against Miocic at UFC 295 paved the way for Aspinall to square off against Sergei Pavlovich for the interim title. He won the fight by knockout in the first round and went on to demolish Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304 to defend his title.
UFC CEO Dana White has made it abundantly clear from the start that despite Aspinall's rise and the general consensus for a fight between the UK MMA star and Jones, 'Bones' will be fighting Miocic next in a legacy showdown. That being said, Aspinall remains optimistic about securing the backup fighter spot for the upcoming clash, even though Jones hinted that UFC 309 could mark his final appearance inside the octagon.
Bearing all this in mind, former UFC two-division champion Daniel Cormier asserted that Aspinall might not get a crack at the undisputed throne on Nov. 16 even if the fight falls apart. Speaking on a recent episode of the Good Guy / Bad Guy, he said:
"Guess what Chael [Sonnen]? Now you have the opportunity to be let down. Step into my shoes for once... If one of those dudes [Jones or Miocic] gets hurt, neither one of them is fighting Tom Aspinall. You're out of your mind. No way! When Jon Jones got hurt the first time [at UFC 295] Sergei Pavlovich was the backup fighter who fought. If somebody gets hurt, get ready for Tom Aspinall vs. Ciryl Gane." [H/t: Red Corner MMA]
Catch Cormier's comments below:
Check out the full episode below:
Daniel Cormier reveals a scenario in which Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall fight can come to fruition
The sequence of events, as they are playing out, might suggest that the potential clash between Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall will never come to fruition. Moreover, Jones has claimed that he might retire after the upcoming title defense clash against Miocic at UFC 309.
While Daniel Cormier was the one who asserted that neither of the two headliners on the Nov. 16 pay-per-view will potentially face Aspinall, he also shed light on a scenario in which the Jones vs. Aspinall fight might come to fruition. Speaking in the aforementioned episode of the Good Guy / Bad Guy, he said:
“If Stipe wins and Jones loses and feels like he has something to prove, it’s more likely he’ll fight Aspinall before retiring. But if he wins, he’ll go off into the sunset.”