The on-going saga regarding Jon Jones’ next heavyweight title defense is still one of the biggest talking points in the sport.
Despite some positive updates from the interim champion, some have suggested that Tom Aspinall should move on from the idea of fighting ‘Bones’ in what would be the biggest fight of the year.
The consensus greatest of all time has been accused of ducking the Brit for several months having shown little interest in the matchup despite the fact that Jones has praised Aspinall in the past.
A major sticking point in the negotiations appears to be how much money the heavyweight champion wants to take this fight which isn’t surprising given that he’d be putting a lot on the line.
Whilst Aspinall would have more to gain, it’s not like Jones hasn’t had some close fights before where his reputation was slightly damaged.
Curtis Blaydes says Jon Jones feels more vulnerable having lost his aura against Dominick Reyes
The only loss on Jon Jones’ record is the time that he was disqualified in 2009 against Matt Hamill for a technique that is now legal.
Whilst the numbers show that he is 28-1-1 in his career that started in 2008, many believe that there should be another mark in the losses column.
At UFC 247, Jones defended his light heavyweight title for the last time against Dominick Reyes before vacating the belt several months later.
The champion won the fight on all three scorecards but there’s a fairly common belief that the challenger deserved the win with the media scorecards being 14-7 in favor of Reyes.
UFC heavyweight contender Curtis Blaydes referenced this fight during a recent interview with Home of Fight where he spoke about why he doesn’t think the heavyweight title unification bout will happen.
Blaydes, who fought Aspinall twice, doesn’t believe that Jones is scared of the interim champion but he does think that ‘Bones’ is being a bit more cautious about his next move.
“This is all on Jon, he’s the hold up. I don’t know, I’m not saying he’s scared because he’s Jon Jones like what does he have to be scared of? I do believe, even though it’s not fear, I think he’s accepting that he’s older, a little slower, it’s harder to heal from little bumps and bruises and that stuff.
“I think he feels more vulnerable and we’ve already seen him, I view his first fight versus Dominick Reyes as a loss because I was there. I watched that fight, I view it as a loss. We’ve already seen his aura diminished. I think he also understands that and again, I don’t want to say he’s scared but I think he’s acknowledging like, ‘I could lose.’”
Curtis Blaydes gives latest update after several return delays
Since his loss to Tom Aspinall at UFC 304 last July, Curtis Blaydes’ return to the Octagon has been hit with several delays.
The #5-ranked heavyweight contender was matched up with former Dana White’s Contender Series alum Rizvan Kuniev for February 22 in Seattle until a minor injury to the Russian pushed the fight back.
UFC 313 several weeks later was the new date until on the day of the fight, Blaydes withdrew after suffering from Norovirus.
Though the fight was then rescheduled for Qatar on May 17, Blaydes has since posted and confirmed with Home of Fight that it’s looking like June 21 in Azerbaijan for the bout to finally take place.