Ariel Helwani didn’t hold back in his assessment of the UFC’s current heavyweight title picture.
Becoming the first fighter in more than a decade to defend an interim title, Tom Aspinall walked through one of the most feared men in the division, Curtis Blaydes, in a stunning 60-second blitz at UFC 304, further establishing himself in the eyes of many as the best heavyweight in the world today.
Meanwhile, undisputed heavyweight champion Jon Jones only has one fight in the division.
By the time ‘Bones’ is expected to put his gold on the line for the first time, he’ll be 18 months removed from his title-winning performance against Ciryl Gane at UFC 285. Aspinall has bagged three first-round knockouts in that timeframe, leading Helwani, among others, to recognize the UK fan favorite as the legit UFC heavyweight king.
During a recent episode of The MMA Hour, Helwani slammed the promotion for not getting fully behind Aspinall despite his impressive run inside the Octagon. Helwani also managed to work in a few digs at Jones, noting that unlike ‘Bones,’ Aspinall does not “disrespect” or “embarrass” the company.
”The guy [Aspinall] is a dream,” Helwani said. “He’s a family man, he doesn’t disrespect the company, and he doesn’t embarrass the company… It blows my mind that they’re not getting behind him in the ways I think they should get behind him.”
”They’ve got something very special, and he’s the best heavyweight in the world, and I don’t even think it’s a debate. I don’t think it’s a hot take. I don’t think it’s a crazy statement. He is the best heavyweight in the world in my opinion and that interim belt is a hell of a lot more real than Jones’ belt if you ask me.”
Tom Aspinall listed as -150 favorite in potential Jon Jones UFC title fight
Aspinall is virtually perfect inside the Octagon, scoring eight wins and eight finishes with his only loss coming against ‘Razor’ after suffering a devastating knee injury 15 seconds into their first meeting in 2022.
In November, Jon Jones plans on making his return to the Octagon at UFC 309 in Madison Square Garden to defend his undisputed strap against former two-division titleholder and consensus heavyweight GOAT Stipe Miocic, though the bout has not been officially announced. Presumably, the winner of that fight would then compete against Aspinall in a unification clash.
Whether that actually happens remains to be seen, but it hasn’t stopped online sportsbooks from offering early odds for the potential showdown. According to BetOnline, Aspinall is listed as a -150 following his first-round destruction of Curtis Blaydes.
This time last year, Aspinall was sitting as a +170 underdog and Jones was a 2-to-1 favorite.
