Jon Jones is tired of being ‘begged’ to fight Tom Aspinall: ‘I’m done with the distractions’

Jon Jones is tired of Tom Aspinall’s begging.

With ‘Bones’ sitting as the undisputed UFC heavyweight world champion and Aspinall carrying around the interim strap, you’d think it would be a foregone conclusion that the two would step inside the Octagon to unify their titles. Unfortunately, that’s not the case — no matter how much Aspinall begs for it.

“Even though it’s flattering to be begged, I’m done with the distractions,” Jones wrote in X. “Got the biggest fight of my life coming up.”

In reality, nobody is begging Jon Jones to do anything — except maybe retire. All Aspinall and MMA fans are asking is that he do the right thing and unify his title with the interim champion and top-ranked contender. Instead, ‘Bones’ insists on moving forward with a meaningless fight against 41-year-old Stipe Miocic who hasn’t seen his hand raised in four years.

Tom Aspinall moves on from Jon Jones

Tired of waiting around for Jones to do what has been done by practically every other undisputed champion, Tom Aspinall will instead defend his interim belt, becoming the first fighter to do so since Renan Barao more than a decade ago.

The UK-based star will head to Manchester on July 27 for a showdown with Curtis Blaydes, the winner taking the interim title home and setting the stage for… something.

The fight between Aspinall and Blaydes at UFC 304 will be a rematch of their brief encounter in July 2022. Aspinall went down 15 seconds into the scrap due to a freak knee injury, handing him his first and only loss inside the Octagon. Aspinall has been chomping at the bit to run it back ever since.

Aspinall will get that chance later this summer while Jon Jones focuses on his fight with Miocic, slated to go down on November 9 when the UFC makes its annual stop in Madison Square Garden.