“Traitor” UK Compatriot Doesn’t Think Tom Aspinall Stands a Chance Against Prime Jon Jones; Catches Fire for It

An English fighter made a bold and saucy take on the Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall PPV super fight that may never happen.

“Traitor” UK Compatriot Doesn’t Think Tom Aspinall Stands a Chance Against Prime Jon Jones; Catches Fire for It

Prime Jon Jones poised to make easy work out of Tom Aspinall, per the Brit's friend (Source: X/IMAGO)

Jon Jones might have escaped that Tom Aspinall fight saga and possible heavyweight title unification bout with his retirement. But Jones is never really out of the super fight shtick. Subsequently, the topic of a Jones vs. Aspinall heavyweight saga is bringing in more and more commentary on it.

Jon Jones himself didn’t facilitate getting out of the woodwork. Two weeks after Jones’ supposed retirement, the UFC White House concept PPV card brought him back the way a guaranteed fight could not.

580+ days of a logjam, seven months on hold for a PPV compensation, and fast forward hundreds of tweet-sprees remained the core part of Jones’ title run. A Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall bout is still on everyone’s mind; plus, the UK Native is a New-Gen heavyweight like none other and fits the thematic UK vs. US White House event top bill.

English welterweight and Aspinall’s compatriot Leon Edwards recently weighed in on the matter. ‘Rocky’ rockily predicted that the American legend would have bested Aspinall in his prime!

Prime, I’ll go, Jon Jones, …Yeah, Yeah, 100 percent…I rate Jon Jones highly. I believe [this] …I believe that he is the best to ever do. [But] Tom is for now, he is the guy now.

Leon Edwards told boxing analyst Carl Froch at the IBA Pro 7 event in Istanbul, Turkey

Edwards himself knows that playing the hype does not always equate to victory. By all means, the former UFC welterweight king was to have a field day at the UFC 304 PPV main event in his home country. Unfortunately, Belal Muhammad spiked, tripped, struck, tagged, and bagged the gold from him over five rounds.

However, if (not-so-prime) Jones, 37, were to be fought by Tom Aspinall right now, a better chance of victory would be given to him by Edwards.

[Tom] …[He], I think the speed, power he carries, and the way he moves in there, he would’ve gave Jon Jones problems. It would’ve been a good fight.

Leon Edwards further said

Aspinall is a stiff test with first-round KOs and pace like a welterweight. Many analysts and oddsmakers have him tagged as the most bankable heavyweight option for a super fight. However, Edwards’ analysis favoring his Englishman ‘pal’ was a little too late; the sentiments around Jones aren’t really all sunshine and bloom right now. Hence, the fight fans picked Rocky apart for it.

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Fight fans rip ‘traitor’ Leon Edwards for negative assessment on Tom Aspinall

It’s not all on Leon Edwards, and neither is this a cardinal sin. Jones’ longevity as a former two-weight champ is legendary. The one-sided glory-glazing for consensus GOAT fighter Jon Jones is nothing new. Aspinall’s other compatriots have done much the same. But given that ‘Bones’ was negligent, an unreliable option for a UFC ballot fight, had more DUIs and run-ins than heavyweight fights, his fame and perks were fast dwindling.

Fans slam ‘traitor’ for hot take on Jon Jones vs Tom Aspinall
Fans slam ‘traitor’ for hot take on Jon Jones vs Tom Aspinall (Source: X)

Jones’ PPV monetary compensation and a six-month ask for camp turned out a stalling tactic and did not help. Plus, he was none the flashy finisher like Tom Aspinall ever was; Jon Jones even touted some checkered fights that went to the judges’ digits rather than finishes. Whereas Tom Aspinall is touted one-of-a-kind fighter by the statleaders.ufc.com (UFC Record books) leaderboards.

Hence, sentiments around Jones being a better fighter were fast switching. A clip of Edwards’ thoughts on Jones vs. Aspinall has since gone famous on fan forums. But Rocky sported some old thoughts on it, about the American fighter winning. Here are some reactions to that:

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UFC fans took to the comments section to express their angst over what they saw as a betrayal. Some joked that opinions around Jones are so washed that even Prime Edwards would beat him! Others dissed that the traitorous Rocky was a ‘bum’ bumped on his head too hard at UFC 304. All in all, it does not bode well for him.

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