Dana White reveals another update on Aspinall/Jones fight

As reported on MMA on SI, UFC 313 took place this past weekend, but Dana White has been working hard to ensure that the bout between UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones and interim UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall happens.

White went on a media tour Wednesday after announcing that he would be a boxing promoter later this year under the direction of His Excellency Turki Al-Sheikh and WWE President Nick Khan.

Jim Rome asked Dana White for an update on the fight, and White said, “The plan is to fight Jon this summer.”

“Obviously, when, where, and all that stuff is being determined. My goal this year is to make that fight [with] Aspinall,” White continued.

White also added that he wanted to see if Alex Pereira would put on a dominant performance at UFC 313 before considering Pereia’s transition to heavyweight.

Regarding Pereira’s transition, Dana White said, “The other thing about Pereira that everybody loves is this guy wants to go up to heavyweight and fight at heavyweight, too,” White said.

“I’m the one that’s actually holding him back on that,” White continued.

Dana White did confirm that if Pereira made the leap to heavyweight, there could be a possibility of a Pereira-Jones fight — if Jones doesn’t retire from the sport.

“He wants to [fight Jon Jones],” White continued. “Let’s see how this fight plays out, if he wins, how he wins, all that kind of stuff. I think that the fight that everybody wants to see right now is Jones and Aspinall and then there’s no doubt that Pereira could fight the winner,” White continued.

For now, the UFC promotion team is shaping up for a summer to remember.