It’s almost been a month following UFC 309, where Jon Jones successfully defended his heavyweight title against former champion Stipe Miocic. Since then, ‘Bones’s’ future has remained in UFC boss Dana White’s hands, as the MMA community and fans eagerly await confirmation of a potential fight between Jon Jones and interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall. Just before UFC 309 in Madison Square Garden, White teased fans, stating, “If Jon Jones wants to fight again after Saturday night [UFC 309], he will fight Tom Aspinall [next].” Well, Jones finds Aspinall “annoying”. Still, he may fight him, but with a rider.

“He’s annoying to me and that’s my own personal—he annoys me. I get it you guys find it entertaining, but I find him annoying. I just don’t like him and at the end of the day, if I give him the opportunity to fight me, I want to be so compensated-I want to say it, I want that ‘f–k you’ money, honestly.”

“That’s just what it is. Or else my life is perfect without him. I don’t need him at all and he needs me and that’s a good place to be in a negotiation,” Jones had pointed out. In fact, shocking many fans, Jones had even announced plans to vacate the belt and fight for fun taking ‘random’ opponents. Interestingly, he had also named two such fighters, and none of them were Tom Aspinall. His choices were Jamahal Hill and Derrick Lewis. Amid the chaos, the fight world has split into two parts.

Some want to see the much-anticipated heavyweight showdown, while others don’t think the match-up is appropriate. Some fans don’t believe Jon Jones needs to prove himself against a 6-year-younger Tom Aspinall. One of these fans is UFC-ranked #9 heavyweight contender Jairzinho Rozenstruik. In a recent interview with Inside Fighting on YouTube, when asked about the highly-anticipated matchup between Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall, Rozenstruik expressed his ambivalence in wanting to see that fight.

“Yes and no.” He expressed uncertainty about the fight affecting the two-weight champion’s legacy, stating, “It doesn’t do anything for Jon Jones. If I’m thinking of Jon Jones’s legacy, you can’t break it, even if you beat him. He’s 37 now. So at this point, I don’t care if it was me. It would be great for Tom, but at the same time, you want to see Tom against someone close to his age, dominating in all areas. So, that’s how I feel about it.”

Meanwhile, before the UFC it was widely anticipated that it would be Jon’s last fight. Even his coach had also spoken along the same line. But after defeating Stipe, Jon declared that he was not thinking of retiring. However, Rozenstruik thinks, Bones can safely bid goodbye to the sport. On being asked “Does Jon Jones fight again?” Rozenstruik said, “I don’t feel like it but he might, but I don’t feel like he doesn’t have to,
like I mean, yeah he won everything. He wanted Pereira fight but I feel like yeah fun fight fun fight will do it for him but I don’t think he has to fight again.”

Like him or hate him, Jon Jones has done enough in the sport of MMA to find himself as a top contender in the GOAT conversation. Joining the UFC in 2009, ‘Bones’ brought a brand of violence reflective of his intelligence as a fighter, only for it to not be replicated by anyone who came after him. But Jones’ unwillingness to fight the younger Aspinall has led to point out the hypocrisy of ‘Bones’, considering he fought much older opponents as a young man, famously beating Shogun Rua to claim the light heavyweight title as a 23-year-old. However, Jones has got support here as well.

In a video uploaded on his YouTube channel last month, former contender Brendan Schaub was furious at the fans who accused Jones of avoiding the Tom Aspinall fight. There is a common perception that Jones’ asking for insane amount of money is just a way to do that. Referring to that Schaub had hit out, “People are like, ‘You’re ducking him, just get in there with him it’s the right thing to do’, shut up! If you’re going to cry over fighters not getting compensated and not getting taken care of, and then when a guy finally does, you s**t on him, well, that doesn’t make sense, does it?”

While a potential fight between Jones and Aspinall remains relatively uncertain, speculation and predictions surrounding it have already stirred significant buzz in the MMA world, even catching the attention of the UFC’s light heavyweight champion, Alex Pereira. Let’s see what ‘Poatan’ had to say about the possible matchup.

Who did Alex Pereira pick in the Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall matchup?

Alex Pereira is the man who Jon Jones wants to fight next, not the interim champion Tom Aspinall. However, UFC boss Dana White put a stop to Jones’s pursuit of ‘Poatan’, claiming, “He [Jones] is not fighting Pereira.” Despite this, in the twilight of his career, the heavyweight king is eager to fight Brazilian, citing Pereira as adding to his legacy, and the fact that the LHW champion is a beloved figure in the USA. He said, “I think the numbers are incredibly high, Americans love Alex Pereira.” Regardless, Dana White and Co. are determined to make the title unification bout happen.

In the meantime, Alex Pereira is left to watch the developments surrounding Jones vs. Aspinall, unsure of how he might fit into the equation moving forward. Recently, Poatan’ spoke about the potential matchup while speaking to TNT Sports after UFC 310, where he supported fellow Brazilian Alexandre Pantoja in the main event.

Alex Pereira, who has business of his own to settle within the Octagon, with contenders of his division, also urged the heavyweight champion to fight Aspinall before facing him. However, concerning the outcome of that possible matchup, ‘Poatan’ is clear on who he thinks will win the fight. Here’s what he said to TNT Sports after the recently concluded UFC 310 event, “I think Jon Jones has a lot of experience on his side. Some people say, ‘Aspinall this, Aspinall that,’ but it comes down to experience. Jon Jones is a seasoned guy. He’s been there, so I think he wins.”

Alex Pereira and Jones Jones have maintained a positive relationship recently, often supporting each other. Their camaraderie gained attention earlier this year at UFC 306, when ‘Poatan’ expressed his interest in training alongside ‘Bones’ as he prepared for his rumored fight against Magomed Ankalaev.

While the Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall fight has yet to be confirmed, what do you think of Jairzinho Rozenstruik’s viewpoint? Do you agree that even if the interim champion were to dethrone ‘Bones’ from the heavyweight throne, it wouldn’t tarnish Jones’s legacy? Share your thoughts below.