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Jones Says Aspinall Is Overrated – Is He Right?

Originally posted on BoxingNews.com | Last updated Nov 6, 2025 2:24 AM ET

Jon Jones has reacted to Tom Aspinall’s latest performance, calling him overrated.

Jones’ comments were in response to Tom’s no-contest last month at UFC 321 against Ciryl Gane. In the first defense of his heavyweight title, the pressure was on Tom to perform, especially since he was elevated from an interim champion once Jones retired in June. However, an accidental eye poke from Gane in both eyes meant Tom could not continue after the first round.

Despite claiming he could not see, the arena responded with boos. A rematch will likely take place next year, but Jones had no sympathy. He reacted by changing his Instagram profile picture to a duck with an eye patch. This was directly aimed at those who had accused him of avoiding Tom. Once the dust had settled, Jones felt Tom was predictable. He bashed his jiu jitsu, stating it was overrated. While he recognized his one-two as impressive, Jones was overall disappointed by what he had seen.

“I feel Tom’s a great athlete, but I feel he’s a one-trick pony. I believe that his wrestling, and Jiu-Jitsu, is incredibly overrated. He has a beautiful 1-2 [combination], I got to learn a lot about his patterns in his last fight. A beautiful 1-2, and that’s about it. He couldn’t touch Ciryl Gane at all, that’s how I felt, Gane was just getting warmed up. Gane’s hands were down, bouncing around all over the place. One-trick pony,” Jones said

The Reality

Jones, though, does touch on the other factors. Aspinall’s UFC statistics show he has a perfect 100% takedown defense and an 80% takedown accuracy, with three submission wins, suggesting high-level grappling. However, Jones claims the British champion’s “jiu-jitsu is overrated.” This critique stems from the fact that Aspinall has never been genuinely tested over five rounds, having finished nearly all his opponents in the first round. The limited action in the first round against Ciryl Gane, an elite striker, looking “sharp” with a jab that bloodied Aspinall’s nose, may not be enough to make an assessment.

The fight also ended prematurely, meaning Aspinall had no opportunity to implement his game plan, which often involves feeling out an opponent for a round before capitalizing on their mistakes. Furthermore, Aspinall was elevated to undisputed champion after Jones retired, creating a legitimacy crisis that Jones is now exploiting.

This article first appeared on BoxingNews.com and was syndicated with permission.

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