Michael Bisping believes Jon Jones will tarnish his legacy by ducking a fight with Tom Aspinall.
Stepping into the UFC 296 co-main event after ‘Bones’ went down due to a pectoral injury, Aspinall claimed the interim heavyweight championship via a spectacular 69-second knockout of Sergei Pavlovich. Typically, the interim titleholder immediately moves on to unify his gold with that of the undisputed champion. In this case, that would be Jon Jones. However, Jones and the UFC have other plans.
Instead of a title unification clash with Aspinall, Jones will move forward with his previously scheduled showdown against Stipe Miocic, leaving Aspinall to sit by the wayside and wait for things to play out.
Understandably, Aspinall is infuriated and has been targeting Jones in interviews and on social media. That sparked a heated debate between the two on X with many, including Michael Bisping, siding with Aspinall.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, the ex-middleweight champ suggested that Jon Jones’ legacy will be tarnished if he retires before unifying his title with Aspinall’s.
“[Jon Jones] doesn’t have anything to prove, other than he can beat Tom Aspinall,” Bisping said. “If he does retire right now, that is always going to be the narrative. There’s people out there – and I know this annoys Jones, so I’m sorry to bring it up – people say that he avoided Francis Ngannou. I’m not saying that, but that’s a narrative that exists. I don’t think that’s true, but people do say that.
“If he doesn’t fight Tom Aspinall if he beats Stipe, that will forever be the narrative. That will forever be the narrative – that he’s ducking Tom Aspinall, that he’s afraid of Tom Aspinall, that he looks at Tom Aspinall – this gigantic man, a true heavyweight that moves like a middleweight, that has ridiculous finishing ability, a heavyweight Georges St-Pierre, a mixed martial arts version of Muhammad Ali, (and is scared).”
Does Dodging a Fight with Tom Aspinall Damage Jon Jones’ GOAT Status?
Jon Jones sent fight fans into a meltdown, suggesting that he would walk away from mixed martial arts altogether following his fight with Stipe Miocic. Many have called for ‘Bones’ to relinquish the heavyweight title in light of his comments.
Doing so would forfeit pay-per-view points Jones is entitled to as a defending world champion, so we can’t see that happening in any way, shape, or form.
It’s clear that Jon Jones sees the Miocic fight as an important one for his overall legacy, but Bisping believes that if ‘Bones’ bows out before fighting one of the most well-rounded heavyweights of all time, Tom Aspinall, it will permanently hang over his legacy like a dark cloud.
“How on earth can Jon Jones retire when there’s another active, defending heavyweight champion?” asked Bisping. “You just can’t do that. That is madness, and it will affect his legacy and tarnish his accomplishments forever.”
Do you think Jon Jones needs to fight Tom Aspinall to solidify his status as MMA’s greatest of all time?