Tom Aspinall denies UFC rival Jon Jones is ‘Holding up’ his career: ‘It’s only been 7 months’
Interim heavyweight champion, Tom Aspinall has denied claims from pundits and fans that Jon Jones is “holding up” his career in the Octagon amid their faltering title unification fight since 2023, as he hopes to finally secure a pairing this summer.
Aspinall, the current interim heavyweight titleholder — managed to scoop that title all the way back in 2023 with a first round knockout win over the-then surging Russian finisher, Sergei Pavlovich at Madison Square Garden.
And defending that interim crown last summer at UFC 304 in Manchester, surging fan-favorite, Aspinall avenged his sole loss in the promotion with a dominant opening round knockout win against Colorado veteran, Curtis Blaydes.
However, in the time since, Aspinall has struggled majorly to land a title unification pairing with fellow heavyweight kingpin, Jones — with the Rochester native instead fighting the returning, Stipe Miocic last November in New York en route to a dominant win.
And over the weekend, Atherton native, Aspinall held talks with UFC Chief Business Officer, Hunter Campbell — with fans hopeful issues on a pairing with Jones had finally been ironed out.
Tom Aspinall denies Jon Jones is “holding up” his career with inactivity
But this evening, during an interview with Ariel Helwani for Uncrowned, Aspinall denied claims from fans and commenters that Jones’s inactivity or reluctance to book a fight with him as a bid to “hold up” his fighting career in the UFC.
“It’s exciting times, man,” Tom Aspinall said. “It’s really exciting times. And the break, I mean, it’s not a massive break, to be honest. People are saying, oh, you know, Jon Jones is holding up your career and stuff.
“It’s only been seven months,” Tom Aspinall explained. “It’s not too bad. And yeah, I don’t want to say too much, but… (2:59) I understand. (3:00) Exciting stuff in the future, for sure.”
