For the first time on Saturday, UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones and interim titlist Tom Aspinall met face-to-face and things got interesting.
After three years away from the sport, Jon Jones finally made his return in March of 2023 and became the latest UFC fighter to win a belt in a second division when he dominated Ciryl Gane en route to becoming the new heavyweight champion. Unfortunately, fight fans have not seen him compete since.
After being booked in a matchup for the ages against division legend Stipe Miocic, Jones was sidelined for the rest of 2023 with a pectoral tear. With the heavyweight title up in the air, the UFC booked Tom Aspinall vs. Sergei Pavlovich in a November interim title bout and the Englishman became his country’s first heavyweight champion.
- Jon Jones record: 27-1-1 (10 KOs, 7 submissions)
Unfortunately, it seems more likely that Jones vs. Miocic is rebooked when “Bones” is healthy instead of a unification bout fight fans really want. Well, on Saturday at the Arnold Schwarzenegger Expo in England, fans were given another reason to hope the UFC pivots to Jones vs. Aspinall when the two came face-to-face for the first time.
Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall come face-to-face at Arnold Expo
In the video above, the two heavyweight superstars are cordial when they come eye-to-eye. However, what is interesting is when Aspinall places his hand on Jones’ shoulder in a friendly gesture, the Octagon legend quickly removes it. It added a tense layer to the faceoff that made it seem like their smiles were not a show of their real emotions.
As of now, Jon Jones has not been booked for his UFC return. Likewise for Aspinall, who does not have a dance partner for his first interim title defense. Here is hoping this moment and the social media interest push the company to make the heavyweight clash many fight fans are really hoping for this summer.
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