Tom Aspinall and Jon Jones Take Beef Public as ‘Ducking’ Claims Catch Heat

Tom Aspinall rips into 'unpredictable' Jon Jones, doubles down on retiring him without UFC PPV title unification fight happening.

Tom Aspinall and Jon Jones Take Beef Public as ‘Ducking’ Claims Catch Heat

Tom Aspinall doubles down on stance of retiring UFC Champ Jon Jones in scathing tweet (Source: X/IMAGO)

Jon Jones may seemingly never return to active competition at all after yet another series of endless teases about it. That would mean the UFC heavyweight strap was put to contention minimal times under him, and Tom Aspinall was left to dry out. With no PPV title unifier in sight, the Brit now takes a more front-forward approach to their beef.

Given that he has passed an ungodly amount of days since winning the interim belt on the UFC 295 PPV card, Tom Aspinall sees such an unification super fight going stale. The UK native let go of baiting and even recently veered to comically dissing it.

A nonchalant ‘Bones’, though, dropped bombs that he might be ‘done’ for the long run, to Kamil Gadzhiyev, during Thailand’s ALF Reality. Jon Jones recently was in Phuket. He conducted the biggest-yet training seminar at Bangtao Muay Thai MMA gym in Thailand. Here is what the champion had to say about his trip (via @JonnyBones on X) and free promo he got due to Aspinall’s constant pokes:

Just wrapped up the biggest seminar in Phuket history 🙌🏾🔥
Half the crowd flew in from the UK—how wild is that?! 🇬🇧💥
Massive shoutout to my guy Tom for all the free promo… couldn’t have done it without you 😎
Seriously though, I’m beyond grateful for this brand new UK following. You guys showed up with so much love and energy, and I felt every bit of it.
Let’s keep this momentum going—make sure to sign that petition today, we’re pushing 200k! How exciting 🤗📝

Jon Jones via X

The fan petition on change.org to strip Jones of his undisputed hardware has reached massive numbers, with rumors of roping in industry names and fighters even. However, the next steps are less than clear, with Jon Jones keeping one step out of the fighting door. By all means, it seemed like a PPV title unifier would happen, and Jones himself said he made his intentions clear to UFC brass.

In a series of tweets over the previous weeks, ‘Bones’ also said he’d be okay retiring now and be content with where he stands with his legacy. To that end, he has long dismissed Tom Aspinall as a young, fledgling name. However, the Brit once touted he’d ‘retire’ Jones out of his strap without even fighting him. Now, he doubles down on it, with Jones tweeting that English fans are mobbing up his seminar.

My pleasure Jon. Told you I’m not an a**hole. Glad you’re enjoying retirement 👍🦆

Tom Aspinall via X

Details behind Jones’ PPV monetary compensation and title fight scheduling are hazy. However, there is not reportedly much in the way of making this fight, other than the champ himself. This time around, he nonchalantly joked about spotting English fans during his seminar, with the proposition of stripping him gaining traction. But overall, Bones has a bone to pick when it comes to Aspinall.

Jon Jones weary of being a Tom Aspinall KO highlight reel

After his quickfire first-round TKO of Curtis Blaydes at the Manchester UFC 304 PPV last summer, most industry standouts doused Tom Aspinall as the current active heavyweight. The UK fighter set an unprecedented bar when it came to UFC heavyweight ballot fighting standards.

There might be legit reasons why Jon Jones doesn't prefer a Tom Aspinall scrapper
There might be legit reasons why Jon Jones doesn’t prefer a Tom Aspinall scrapper (Source: X)

Per statleaders.ufc.com (UFC Record books), the 32-year-old fighter averages the least competition bottom position time, has quite a few first-round highlight reels, and overall moves like a welterweight. A BJJ phenom on top of that, this is what makes Aspinall special and a true stiff skills test for Jon Jones and his longevity.

Chael Sonnen already sent the dwindling Jon Jones to the “shadow realm,” stepping into the 2025 season, citing his inactivity and the skills bar of Aspinall. Sonnen’s ESPN co-host, Daniel Cormier, a prime Jones rival, thinks no different. To that end, he thinks that is why Bones is weary, as a ‘Jones’ knockout would make the rounds for the UFC litigation’s future video packages!

It’s a weird place that he’s at in his career right now, …He’s not scared, make no mistake about it. But I think it’s enough to question. You know what I think a big worry might be for him? With Aspinall, he can potentially get knocked out. Like legitimately knocked out and put on his back and out cold. I just don’t know if he wants to have that visual of him in the world. 

Daniel Cormier said

‘DC’ is twice winless in a rivalry against the champ, and he gets why he’d avoid getting knocked by Tom Aspinall. But said reluctance, if true, has had its pitfalls. Through the years, he has set quite a legacy, but at 205 pounds.

Jones presently possesses the heavyweight championship title and has successfully defended his title on one occasion. He may be heading toward retirement if he passes on a title unification, thus adding to a long logjam even more.

Also Read: