‘Jon Jones Is Smart in His Approach’ – Daniel Cormier on Jones’ UFC Leverage in Tom Aspinall Fight
Daniel Cormier can’t see the UFC paying Jon Jones $30 million for a fight with Tom Aspinall, but if fans want it bad enough, Dana White will deliver.
After leaving the door open for a showdown with the interim titleholder in November, Jones’ reported asking price for the quote-unquote biggest heavyweight fight in UFC history is a steep one.
And while some, like longtime color commentator Joe Rogan, think the promotion will ultimately give the GOAT what he’s asking for, others, like former champ-champ Daniel Cormier, think the UFC will be successful in booking the bout, though not to the tune of $30 million.
“I ain’t doing it, so then it made people go, ‘I want this, I want this.’ And when you want something, especially you, the family, because you drive everything, when you want something bad, the UFC tends to make it happen,” Cormier said on his YouTube channel. “Will it make it happen to the tune of $30 million? I don’t know. I wouldn’t say that it would happen, but what I do know is that they will be far more willing to have the conversation.
“So, for all the time that everybody has said how horrible Jones is, and he’s stupid, he’s an idiot, me being at the lead of this, very smart in the way that he’s approached this. Especially if he wins—imagine if he wins.”
Jon Jones beating Aspinall would be bad for the UFC
So what happens if Jon Jones does defeat Tom Aspinall? Chances are, he would either stick around long enough to cash in on another big-money fight, like a showdown with light heavyweight king Alex Pereira, or he would simply walk away from the fight game with his gold and his GOAT status secured.
To Cormier, that would be the worst-case scenario.
“They’ve got to get him in there with Aspinall. And you’ve got to hope that Aspinall wins if you want the heavyweight title to continue being what the heavyweight title has been,” Cormier said. “Because if he doesn’t, and Jones goes, ‘I’m walking away as the greatest of all time, as the reigning heavyweight champion,’ it leaves a gap that’s hard to fill.”
