Written by Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Jon Jones might go down as the greatest fighter in the history of the sport, but if he wants to solidify his legacy at heavyweight, he needs to face Tom Aspinall.
That’s according to Curtis Blaydes, who fell to Aspinall this past July in an interim title fight that took place while Jones was recovering from an injury and focused on an eventual showdown against Stipe Miocic in November. Jones ultimately dominated Miocic before earning a third-round knockout in what was the former heavyweight champion’s final fight.
That win moved Jones to 2-0 at heavyweight following an even more dominant performance with a submission win over Ciryl Gane in 2023, but Blaydes doesn’t believe either of those victories have really proven a whole lot.
“We don’t [know how good Jon Jones is at heavyweight]. I don’t believe we do,” Blaydes told MMA Fighting. “Those weren’t real tests. He can be the GOAT, but not the GOAT of heavyweight. Right now the GOAT of heavyweight, even though he beat him, I give it to Stipe. Because Stipe, when he was at his brightest, he was special but that was also five years ago, six years ago.
“The only way for Jon to earn my respect — and I know he doesn’t care about earning my respect — but the only way for me to be like ‘yeah this dude’s the heavyweight GOAT’ is for him to beat Aspinall. You’ve got to fight the best to be the best.”
Blaydes’ criticism about the two wins Jones has earned at heavyweight come down to his competition.
While Gane is a former interim heavyweight champion, his biggest deficiency has been his grappling game. Francis Ngannou repeatedly took him down during a title fight and then Jones barely needed two minutes to wrap up a guillotine choke to submit him.
As for Miocic, Blaydes has nothing but the utmost admiration for him. However, there’s no denying that at 42, and sitting out nearly four years between fights, didn’t exactly result in his best performance against Jones.
“That wasn’t the Stipe that beat Alistair [Overeem], that beat [Fabricio] Werdum, that beat all those other great heavyweights,” Blaydes said. “That was a man with one foot in retirement, the other one not. That’s OK, no shade to Stipe. He’s a Hall of Famer. He’s had an amazing career. I don’t think he should hold his head down at all. You got beat by Jon Jones, it is what it is. It’s OK.”
As far as Aspinall goes, Blaydes recognizes and appreciates his skill set after spending two different training camps studying and preparing to fight him.
Their most recent encounter ended just one minute into the opening round after Aspinall clipped him that put Blaydes down and out. It’s that kind of fight-changing power, combined with Aspinall’s unbelievable athleticism at heavyweight, that convince Blaydes he’s going to be a problem for anybody — including Jones.
“He’s very fast, he’s very athletic and hits hard enough,” Blaydes said about Aspinall. “He’s actually a smart heavyweight. He’s not out there just ducking and moving. He’s setting things up. He understands footwork. He understands how to set up a takedown. One thing I notice with Jon, this is a bonus to him, he takes advantage of easy stuff. Like if you allow him to get a layup over and over and over, he’ll take the layup. There hasn’t been anyone in a while that’s forced him to do something else besides taking the easy, low hanging fruit.
“I think Tom’s athleticism would negate a lot of the easy stuff. That would force Jon to open up. The last time we saw Jon have to open up was probably with [Dominick] Reyes. That was the last time we saw somebody who was able to take away the easy stuff because he gave him a different look. He came out in the southpaw and he’s blasting those head kicks from open stance. That’s what it’s going to take. That’s why I think Aspinall, I’m not saying he’s going to go out there be in southpaw, but he presents different issues that take away the easy stuff. I think that’s really the key.”
Aspinall’s ability to end any fight with a single punch also presents a different issue than Jones has faced recently and Blaydes isn’t sure that the former light heavyweight champion can return fire with the same kind of power.
“It’s heavyweight. You really don’t have to do a whole lot of stuff to get the knockout,” Blaydes explained. “If he can force Jon to stand and play his game in the middle of the octagon, it’s anyone’s fight. It’s heavyweight. Whoever’s able to land first, and I don’t know if Jon has heavyweight power.
“We haven’t really been able to see that and I think even when he was a light heavyweight, I don’t remember him ever being able to starch a guy with one punch. It’s always been a bunch of hits. I think that will be the difference. I don’t think Jon has heavyweight power, and I do believe Aspinall does.”
Because Jones has been such an unstoppable force through so much of his career, Blaydes believes Aspinall suddenly casting doubts on whether or not he could win that fight might play a part in finally getting the matchup made.
Add in the UFC’s investment with a hefty payday coming his way and Blaydes expects Jones will eventually strike a deal to face Aspinall in 2025.
“That’s why I fully believe it will happen,” Blaydes said. “Because for Jon, you’re going to turn down — who knows how much they’re offering him — I’m sure they’re offering him a few million. You’re going to turn down a few million to do what? If you don’t fight Aspinall, what do you do? Retire? That’s always an option but he doesn’t seem old, he doesn’t seem slow so why not take the money and defend your title.
“I don’t understand the hold up. Because I’m sure they’re offering him a lot of money. I don’t what else can you offer him besides maybe a partnership in the actual UFC to get him to take the fight? It would be one of the biggest fights in the UFC in years and Jon’s getting older. There’s only so many more squeezes in that orange before it’s dry so might as well get it while it’s hot.”