Jon Jones vs Tom Aspinall Beef: 3 Fights Dana White Can Make as the Interim Champ Stops His Pursuit of the HW GOAT

UFC interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall recently expressed his frustrations with the UFC. He was tired of waiting to fight for the undisputed gold and seemingly called out Jon Jones as they went back and forth on social media. However, Aspinall seems to have given up his pursuit of ‘Bones’, which creates the opportunity for Dana White to set up the interim champion with other opponents.

The heavyweight division in the UFC has seen some exciting contenders come up in the ranks. After Tom Aspinall shut down Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 295, we have the names of a few more contenders who could be paired with the British star in the coming months. Let’s have a look at some of the most logical opponents for Tom Aspinall.

Tom Aspinall could defend his title against Ciryl Gane

‘Bon Gamin’ did not fare too well against Jon Jones when they fought for the heavyweight title at UFC 285 early last year. But he bounced back from the big-timer loss with a win over Serghei Spivac later in September 2023. Following Tom Aspinall’s win at UFC 295, Ciryl Gane called out the interim champion. Incidentally, Aspinall also had his sights set on the Frenchman before facing Pavlovich.

This could be an opportunity to see Tom Aspinall take on Ciryl Gane to test the waters and prepare for Jon Jones, who beat ‘Bon Gamin’ last year. However, the interim champion, while addressing Gane’s recent callout, claimed that he has to go through Jailton Almeida, who set a record in his fight against Derrick Lewis. Now, let us look at another credible opponent for Aspinall.

The interim champion could also consider fighting Alex Pereira

Alex Pereira has been on a path to greatness in the MMA world as of late. The Brazilian fighter took the world by storm after capturing two divisional titles in just seven fights in the UFC. Although he has suffered one loss, ‘Poatan’ quickly captured the middleweight and then light heavyweight title (currently LHW champion) in under a year. Recently, Pereira shared a tweet hinting that he might be looking to fight and win a third title in the UFC, which is the heavyweight championship.

Alex Pereira hinted that he might move to heavyweight for a fight at UFC 300, but that hasn’t been confirmed yet. However, if Dana White decided to pit him against Tom Aspinall, it would be one of the most intriguing matches for UFC fans. Both champions are two of the most dominant strikers in the promotion. This could make for a great fight, but ‘Poatan’ is slated to fight Jamahal Hill to defend the light heavyweight title, too. If that stops him from fighting Aspinall, the interim champion could decide to fight a veteran instead.

Aspinall could even choose to fight Stipe Miocic

Former two-time UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic was scheduled to fight Jon Jones for the title at UFC 295. But that had to be written off due to the reigning champion’s injury. This has left him without a fight, which makes him a great candidate to be the next contender for Tom Aspinall’s interim title. Also, both of them already had a back-and-forth regarding the claim to the undisputed title shot.

Stipe Miocic is 41 years old and may not have much time left in his MMA career. Besides, he claimed earlier that the fight against Jon Jones could be his last. But the former 2-time champion also mentioned considering a title unification fight against Tom Aspinall. This would be a huge fight for the interim champion in his attempt to cement his legacy in the heavyweight division.

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Jon Jones will be out for a considerable amount of time. Hence, the interim title could be getting more attention. The aforementioned fights make a lot of sense to be made. These fights include some of the hottest UFC stars, which would garner a lot of attention from the fans. However, the decision rests in the hands of Dana White as we wait to see what is next for the heavyweight division.

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