Is age just a number in UFC? Well, we know that in sports, when an athlete reaches the age of 30, it’s hardly ideal. Take soccer players, for instance. Soccer G.O.A.T. Zinedine Zidane retired at 34, and legendary Thiago Alcantara, at 33. If we look at UFC, it’s the same scenario. Legendary Hall of Famer and undefeated champ Khabib Nurmagomedov bid farewell to the sport at 29. Then, the first UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey retired at the same age as Nurmagomedov.

Then, while he cannot personally relate to the legends retiring post-30, Chael Sonnen has quite an impressive story. At the age of 19, Chael Sonnen began his MMA career defeating Ben Hailey in Vancouver, Washington, (1997). Often dubbed “The American Gangster”, he is a multifaceted figure. He retired at 42 after a loss to Lyoto Machida at Bellator 222 in June 2019, officially closing the curtain on his colorful MMA career. Since 2015, Sonnen has been a mixed martial arts (MMA) analyst for ESPN.

But on the flip side, Daniel Cormier started at 30! He began his MMA career at 30 after being a successful wrestler, including competing in the Olympics. Cormier went on to become a highly respected fighter in the UFC. He won his light heavyweight title against Anthony Johnson at 36! DC later won the heavyweight title at age 39 by defeating Stipe Miocic. And guess what? He retired when he was 41. Alexander Volkanovski recently broke the age curse by becoming the first fighter to win a UFC title over the age of 35 between the flyweight and lightweight divisions. So, UFC fighters did defy the age limits set by society.

Recently, Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen spoke about the same topic, and naturally, Jon Jones came up in the conversation. Jones is already 37 and still going strong as ever. On the same note, DC said, “Bro Jon Jones and Shevchenko are 37 years old, Chael. They still have so much time to fight if they want to fight.” ‘The Bad Guy’ immediately agreed and replied, “And maybe by the way, looking their best. Jon Jones might have looked his best against Stipe Miocic. That one got dismissed because, like, Stipe was over 40, that might have been the meanest version of Jon Jones.”

Jones was 37 when he fought against Stipe Miocic and defended his Heavyweight belt at UFC 309. He also did it with such pizzazz by giving a spinning backkick to his opponent! But what about his next fight against Tom Aspinall? If at all, it happens that is.

Tom Aspinall vs Jon Jones: A confirmed plan or are all hopes lost?

Will Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall happen before GTA 6? Who knows? The back and forth with this matchup is still ongoing, just when everything was looking good. The interim heavyweight champ has voiced his frustration for months now and even took a layered jibe at Jones by bringing a rubber duck to UFC London (UFC Fight Night 255). But his manner pivoted dramatically after a meeting with UFC CBO Hunter Campbell. Speaking to Ariel Helwani after the meeting, Aspinall stated that he “understood” the UFC’s place, and hinted at progress behind the scenes.

Moreover, Aspinall once again pointed in a positive direction. The Englishman took to his YouTube channel and said, “I know everyone wants fight news, but I do know what’s happening now. I have been sworn to secrecy for a little bit, so stay tuned… but there will be news coming, hopefully very soon.” 

Dana White has previously updated that this fight will 100% happen. But when? Ariel Helwani has again updated on the news of this fight, hinting at jeopardy. “My understanding is, if for some reason, this fight [Jones-Aspinall] doesn’t come to fruition, if for whatever reason it falls apart and we never get to see Jon Jones versus Tom Aspinall, the UFC is not to blame… What I’m reading and surmising and what’s being told to me is they have made every effort in very good faith to make this fight happen,” Helwani told on his YouTube show.

If this fight does not happen, then Dana might strip Jones of his UFC HW title as per The Mac Life interview. White said, “100%. Listen, if we don’t get the fight done, we move on, and we make another fight. But, the night before, I was up in my room with my people till like, six in the morning. We’re working on lots of stuff right now. There’s lots of really good sh*t going on right now.” So will this fight happen? Or will it remain a story in the books of UFC? Share your opinions in the comments below.