Will Jon Jones ever take on Tom Aspinall? This is perhaps the most important question of 2025. We’ve heard the story a million times—Aspinall asks, Jones deflects—rinse, and repeat. But now it seems the interim champion has found himself a new opponent. Who is this opponent? Why, none other than the new light heavyweight champion Magomed Ankalaev himself. The Dagestani fighter stunned the world after beating Alex Pereira at UFC 313. But why is the Englishman considering a fight with Ankalaev next? Well, it was all started by the newly minted 32-year-old champion himself.

It was evident to the fight community that Jon Jones had his sights set on a showdown with Alex Pereira. The two had even exchanged words on social media, sparking excitement among fans who dreamed of witnessing the epic clash. However, with Pereira now having lost his belt to Magomed Ankalaev, Jones appears to have pulled back from the idea.

In the wake of Pereira’s defeat, he posted a video on Instagram, where ‘Bones’ took to the comments to express his disappointment, writing, “Disappointed. I was looking forward to sharing the octagon with you.” Taking to X, Ankalaev mocked ‘Bones’ for running away from Aspinall, saying “Jonny steroid machine was very disappointed. I beat Alex please fight big [Tom Aspinall] stop running.”

However, he then shared the idea of him wanting to fight Tom Aspinall. He tweeted, “Big Ank 🤝Big Tom.” Looking at the size of Ankalaev, it seems he won’t have any trouble moving up a division. He also showed in his last fight that he has the skill set to challenge one of the best in the division. But what does Aspinall feel about the potential match-up? It seems he is looking forward to it. The Englishman took to his Instagram account to share a story and responded with “🤝”. Only one problem though (for Ankalaev). UFC CEO Dana White had already made it clear that the fight between Jones and Aspinall will definitely happen.

But with the interim champion showing interest in fighting Ankalaev, it will be interesting to see what happens next. Aspinall closely witnessed the recently concluded UFC 313 main event fight and seemed particularly impressed. However, he also found time to analyze why Ankalaev was able to upset Pereira. According to the hard-hitting Brit fighter, it all came down to who wanted it more on that particular night.

Tom Aspinall feels it was Ankalaev’s pressure which helped him at UFC 313

Magomed Ankalaev reminded the world why he’s one of the most feared fighters in the light heavyweight division with a commanding performance at UFC 313. Stepping into the Octagon with everything on the line, Ankalaev delivered a statement victory, solidifying his place at the top and leaving no doubt about his championship pedigree. Even interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall was super impressed with his performance. According to the 30-year-old, the Dagestani fighter used just the right kind of game plan to dethrone ‘Poatan’.

He took to his YouTube channel and said, “The key to winning for Ankalaev, in my opinion, he wanted it more, pressure; he looked the fresher man, mixing in the takedowns and the striking beautifully. I wasn’t sure if he’d do that, to be honest.” He also took out time to appreciate the former champion who was one of the most active champions in the division. Aspinall feels Pereira will definitely get a chance to reclaim his title and a rematch is definitely on the cards. He further added, “Lost his title, but the run that he’s been on has warranted an immediate rematch, in my opinion.” 

Will Tom Aspinall get a chance to unify his title against Jones’? Will Magomed Ankalaev ever get the chance to take on Tom Aspinall in his career? All these questions are fun to speculate. But for us fight fans, we want Jones vs. Aspinall and Ankalaev vs. Pereira 2, next. Do you agree with us? Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below.