Tom Aspinall may not be part of UFC 309’s main event title fight between heavyweights Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic, but the interim champion still plans to make himself part of the festivities.
With UFC matchmakers holding strong on their need to book a legacy fight between Jones and Miocic, it has left Aspinall on the outside looking in. The dominant English champion has decimated every fighter the UFC has thrown his way, but despite his recent track record, growing popularity, and huge support among fight fans, Aspinall will have to wait even longer to get his hands on the undisputed UFC heavyweight strap.
Jones and Miocic will meet atop UFC 309’s pay-per-view (PPV) main card on Nov. 16 from inside Madison Square Garden in New York City. It will be one of the biggest fights of the year and a chance for Jones to dig his heels in deeper at heavyweight and solidify his status as the greatest fighter of all time and current pound-for-pound best (according to some).
Aspinall, who is simply looking to fight and unify his interim title, will be in attendance and watching closely. In fact, the 31-year-old champion is aiming to make a few scenes and stir up a few memorable moments during UFC 309’s fight week.
“What’s the plan? Turn up, do some media, cause a few scenes here and there, and try and make the winner stick around and fight me,” said Aspinall via his YouTube channel . “Just see what happens, really. I’m really interested in how both guys look in the fight, that’s really interesting for me…I want to go up close and see what these guys look like in live action. How are they moving? What are they doing? You can see little differences in real life [more] than you can on the TV. I’m looking forward to that!”
It’s unknown at this time if Jones and/or Miocic will retire after they meet later this month. Jones obviously has some tread left on his tires, but he’s been on the fence about fighting Aspinall in the past. As for Miocic, the 42-year-old former champion is likely to walk away no matter what.