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Pound-for-pound
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Sorry, Tom Aspinall, you’re not getting “Bones.”

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight champion Jon Jones makes his long-awaited return to the octagon at UFC 309 next weekend (Sat., Nov. 16, 2024) against former Heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic from inside the most iconic arena in the world, Madison Square Garden in New York City.

While Jones has Miocic in front of him next week, it seems like the entire mixed martial arts (MMA) world wants to know if “Bones” will fight the current interim Heavyweight champion, Aspinall.

Well, we finally have an answer (that everyone already knew): Probably not.

“More than likely not,” Jones told Kevin Iole when asked if he would fight Aspinall if victorious at UFC 309. “I feel like Tom Aspinall is, I don’t want to say nobody, but he just hasn’t proven anything. He hasn’t done anything. I understand he won his belt against Sergei [Pavlovich], and Sergei just got slaughtered by someone else, so it’s like, I’m not here to gamble someone else making a name off of me. I’m here to compete against the guys where when we look back, you know, 10 years from now, you’ll be like, ‘Jon Jones fought this guy and that guy, this legend, and that champion and this champion.”

Aspinall has indeed proven himself against half of the current Top 10 Heavyweights. In fact, he has finished three of the top five fighters in the 265 lb division, with Ciryl Gane being the only one he hasn’t faced yet.

If Jones does continue to fight after UFC 309 instead of retiring, the current UFC Light Heavyweight champion is the only fighter who interests him.

“If there were to be a fight of a guy that’s still on our UFC roster, that would be not only financially worth it but also legacy worth it- it would be Alex Pereira,” Jones said. “We’re both 37 years old. Right now, I weigh about 235. I’m an incredibly light Heavyweight. I think Pereira walks around at 240. I think that fight would go much farther on my legacy than a young man who’s cool today and may be gone tomorrow.

A fight between Jones and Alex Pereira would undoubtedly be absolutely massive, especially for the casual audience, but a fight with Aspinall would be equally as big—if promoted correctly.

It looks like poor Aspinall will miss fighting the best fighter ever.

Bummer.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

If Jon Jones sticks around beyond his upcoming matchup against Stipe Miocic at UFC 309, then he’s got designs on a potential fight against a reigning champion but not the one you might think.

With rumors of retirement swirling around his return on Nov. 16, the now 37-year-old heavyweight champion doesn’t have anything left to prove when it comes to his accomplishments in the sport. That’s why Jones isn’t interested in just fighting anybody at this stage of his career but there is a certain Brazilian knockout artist who’s captured his attention lately.

“If there were to be a fight of a guy that’s still on our UFC roster that would be not only financially worth it but legacy worth it, it would be Alex Pereira,” Jones told Kevin Iole ahead of UFC 309. “Alex Pereira and I, we’re both 37 years old. Right now I weigh about 235 [pounds]. I’m an incredibly light heavyweight. I think Pereira walks around at 240.

“I think that fight would go much farther on my legacy than a young man who’s cool today and maybe gone tomorrow.”

In his short time since joining the UFC roster, Pereira already claimed titles across two different weight classes and he’s scored wins over five former UFC champions. He’s currently riding a five-fight win streak with four knockouts along the way while becoming arguably one of the biggest stars in teh sport.

Meanwhile, the “young man” in question is UFC interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall, who is expected to be in attendance at Madison Square Garden in New York when Jones defends his belt against Miocic in the main event.

Aspinall has asked numerous times for the chance to face Jones since defeating Sergei Pavlovich to claim the interim title but his calls have largely fallen on deaf ears.

While he’s said recently that he hopes that the winner in the UFC 309 main event sticks around long enough to unify the titles, Aspinall probably won’t be thrilled to hear what Jones had to say about that potential matchup.

“More than likely not [fighting Tom Aspinall],” Jones revealed. “I feel like Tom Aspinall is, I don’t want to say nobody, but he just hasn’t proven anything. He hasn’t done anything. I understand that he won his belt against Sergei [Pavlovich]. Sergei just got slaughtered by [Alexander Volkov]. I’m not here to gamble someone else making a name off of me.

“I’m here to compete against the guys when we look back 10 years from now like ‘Jon Jones fought this guy and that guy and this legend and this champion and this champion.’”

As impressive as Aspinall has been during his UFC campaign with an 8-1 record overall and all of his wins coming by knockout or submission inside the first two rounds, Jones just doesn’t see a big enough body of work to make it worth his time to seek out that fight.

Throughout his 16-year UFC career, Jones has witnessed plenty of highly touted prospects come and go and he’s just not interested in sticking around to face the next big thing.

“I remember a time when the whole world thought Johnny Walker was going to be the guy to beat me,” Jones said. “No disrespect for Johnny Walker but we’ve all see the way his career has played out.

“I’ve just been here too long to get all excited about someone who’s hot today. I’m here for legacy. I’ve been gambling for too long to just take random fights.”

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Dana White and Jon Jones recently offered starkly different opinions on whether the much-anticipated fight with Tom Aspinall will come to fruition following UFC 309.

Jones is set to make the first defense of his heavyweight title against Stipe Miocic on Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The two were originally scheduled to face off at UFC 295 in November 2023, but the fight was scrapped at the last minute after “Bones” suffered a torn pectoral muscle.

As a result, Aspinall stepped in to claim the interim heavyweight title with a stunning knockout of Sergei Pavlovich. Since then, the Brit has been outspoken about his desire to face Jones in a title unification bout. However, the former light heavyweight champion has repeatedly brushed off the idea, with the UFC CEO also firmly asserting that Jones’ next challenge will remain Miocic.

Both Jones and Miocic have repeatedly suggested that their upcoming bout could mark the end of their careers. Despite that, in a recent interview with TNT Sports, White expressed his belief that the winner of UFC 309 would likely face Aspinall next.

But during an interview with MMA reporter Kevin Iole, “Bones” outright rejected the notion of facing Aspinall next should he emerge victorious against Miocic next weekend.

Jones argued that the interim heavyweight champion has yet to prove himself worthy of facing him in the Octagon.

“I feel like Tom Aspinall is — I don’t want to say nobody, but he just hasn’t proven anything; he hasn’t done anything. And I understand that, I mean, he won his belt against Sergei, but Sergei just got slaughtered by someone else. So it’s just like, I’m not here to gamble with someone else making a name off of me.”

Jones went on to say that he’s primarily focused on competing against high-profile opponents, those capable of elevating his already storied career. At the moment, reigning UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Alex Pereira is the opponent who piques his interest the most.

“If there were to be a fight with a guy that’s still on our UFC roster that would be not only financially worth it but legacy-worthy, it would be Alex Pereira. Alex Pereira and I are both 37 years old right now. I weigh about 235 [pounds]; I’m an incredibly light heavyweight. I think Pereira walks around at 240, and I think that fight would add much more to my legacy than a young man who’s cool today and maybe gone tomorrow.”

• Read More: Tom Aspinall Explains How Stipe Miocic Can Beat Jon Jones At UFC 309

Continue Reading Dana White & Jon Jones Share Contradictory Answers On If Aspinall Fight Will Happen After UFC 309 at MMA News.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Marcus Buchecha finally re-enters the ONE Championship ring on Friday to face Amir Aliakbari in Bangkok in what could be his last walk to the ring in Asia

Speaking with MMA Fighting ahead of ONE 169, the jiu-jitsu legend said the winner of his clash with Aliakbari could determine who’s next in line for the heavyweight belt—on the line later that night between Anatoly Malykhin and “Reug Reug” Oumar Kane. However, as it is the final bout of Buchecha’s contract with the organization, he might not stick around to find out.

“This fight will give me leverage,” Buchecha said, “So I’ll focus 100 percent on this fight and then discuss better terms. This is the goal.”

Buchecha publicly complained about a lack of fights in early September, saying “I’ve been out waiting for a fight for almost one year.” The Brazilian heavyweight has been inactive since August of 2023, when he suffered his first loss in the sport against “Reug Reug.” ONE booked him versus Aliakbari shortly after his post.

Asked if his long layoff will be taken into consideration when he has to decide whether or not re-sign with ONE, Buchecha said “you can’t cry over spilled milk,” noting he is fully focused on the task ahead of him.

“I hope to talk to you again on Saturday and definitely talk about the future, but my goal right now is Friday,” Buchecha said. “It obviously wasn’t my decision [to stay out for over a year] but I was in the gym, training and evolving in every aspect as an athlete on the feet, in wrestling, in jiu-jitsu. I feel a much better fighter now than I was last time I entered the ring.

“The actual fight [with Kane] was a great experience. I won’t be a hypocrite and say it was the result I wanted, of course not, but it turned out to be great experience. After that fight, plus the 15 months [of training], it added a lot to my career as a MMA athlete. I learned a lot about a Buchecha I didn’t know. It was good to learn to control my emotions in bad and good situations.”

For now, all Buchecha wants is to stop Aliakbari’s four-fight winning streak and enter free agency on a high note.

“He has a good background in Greco-Roman wrestling and he’s one of the two heavyweights I haven’t fought yet, him and Anatoly,” Buchecha said. “I think it’s going to be a very interesting fight to watch, a clash of grapplers.

“He has heavy hands, but his background is in wrestling. If the fight goes to the ground, I’m ready. If it stays on the feet, I’m ready. I don’t care what he wants to do, I’m focused on my goal and my plan.”

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Kamaru Usman and Shavkat Rakhmonov have shared a gym, but that doesn’t mean they can’t share the octagon on fight night.

UFC 310 is still in flux with welterweight champion Belal Muhammad having withdrawn from the scheduled main event after suffering a foot infection. Muhammad was to defend his title against Rakhmonov and it is not yet known if their fight will be rescheduled or if a new opponent will be found for Rakhmonov to stay on the Dec. 7 card.

Should the matchmakers need an elite name to step into Muhammad’s spot, Usman is ready for the call, even if it means squaring off with a fighter he’s often seen in the same training space.

“First of all, let me clarify something: We’re not teammates,” Usman said on his Pound-4-Pound podcast. “He comes in and trains in my gym where I was for most of my career until the last four or five years, which I’m still in that gym. That’s [Henry Hooft’s] gym, Kill Cliff now is the name, but he’s not my teammate per se.

“But if the UFC’s going to call who they think is going to be legit tough enough and man enough to step in there, is crazy enough to step in there on short notice and go out there and possibly shock the world, definitely the UFC know who to call when that situation happens. And if they do give me a call, I’m going to answer the call, we’ll get a couple of things straight and if we’ve got to do it, we’ve got to do it. I don’t shy away from any of that. I’ve done it on six days’ notice. I’ve done it on eight days’ notice and hey, this is only a couple of weeks’ notice.”

Usman is currently on a three-fight skid and has been patient with searching out his next opponent. Most recently, he lost a majority decision to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 294 in a middleweight bout that he accepted on short notice. Prior to that, he lost back-to-back title fights against rival Leon Edwards and is now winless since November 2021.

There has been no love lost between Usman and Muhammad and while that’s a matchup he’s also targeted, he hopes Muhammad is given proper time to recover and suffers no longterm negative effects from his toe infection.

“That’s my personal belief, I do sometimes think he does act like a dork, but Belal, he’s a man,” Usman said. “He’s a man at the same time. He’s a competitor, he’s a fighter, and I would never want to see that happen to anyone. I’ve dealt with series of series of injuries and it’s never fun, especially when this is our livelihood. This is how he feeds his family, so I would never, ever want something like that to happen. So hope for a speedy recovery for Mr. Belal Muhammad.”

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Future Clash?
| BJPenn.com

The Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul boxing spectacle, which streams LIVE on Netflix on Fri., Nov. 15, 2024 from inside AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, will have an all-star lineup handling broadcast and commentary duties next week in “The Lone Star State.”

The main card broadcast will be led by veteran play-by-play announcer Mauro Ranallo, joined by boxing icon Roy Jones Jr. — who fought Tyson to a draw back in late 2020 — and Hollywood actress Rosie Perez of “White Men Can’t Jump” fame.

Perez is a lifelong boxing fan.

A series of fight week activities will be staged at the nearby Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory in Irving, free and open to the public daily at 5 p.m. local time. That includes open workouts (Nov. 12), final press conference (Nov. 13), and official weigh-ins (Nov. 14).

Other notables broadcast talent expected to appear includes Kate Scott, Sean Wheelock, Sibley Scoles, Amir Tyson, Wade Plemons, Dasha Kuret and Kody “Big Mo” Mommaerts, among others. The main card broadcast kicks off at 8 p.m. ET on Netflix.

For much more on the upcoming “Paul vs. Tyson” boxing event click here.

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