‘I’m ex-UFC star – here’s what must happen for | Sports News

Former UFC heavyweight Brendan Schaub believes that several dominos still have to fall before Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall duke it out inside the Octagon.

Over the last year, fans and pundits alike have been clamoring for a heavyweight title unification bout between Jones (28-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC) and interim champion Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC). But little progress has been made in finalizing the highly-anticipated event, as the 37-year-old has repeatedly expressed little interest in making the fight happen.

Taking to YouTube earlier this week, Aspinall pulled back the curtain on his conversations with the UFC and Jones – revealing that his opponent is the one holding up the fight. “I want the fight more than anyone,” he said. “What is holding it up right now is his side. That’s the truth of it.

“The UFC really, really want the fight to happen. They’ve told me that. This is one of the biggest fights in MMA. Does he want to put himself in a position where he’s comfortable enough financially to take the risk that he’s taking to fight me? And that is where we’re at.”

As Aspinall continues to idly wait for a shot at Jones, Schaub floated the name of another UFC star who the 31-year-old could fight in the meantime. “I think it’s all predicated on this weekend. It’s 313, Alex Pereira versus Magomed Ankalaev. And if Alex wins that fight, there’s nothing for him at light heavyweight. There’s also nothing for Tom Aspinall at heavyweight besides Jon Jones,” Schaub exclusively told Express Sports U.S.

“So I think if Alex gets by Ankalaev – which I think he does – you’re going to see Alex fight Tom Aspinall before you see Tom and Jon Jones.”

While Schaub acknowledged that there are few things motivating Jones to fight Aspinall, he speculated that a faceoff could quickly materialize should the Englishman defeat Pereira in a potential future bout.

“Right now, Jon Jones doesn’t have to fight. He’s the greatest of all time, no matter what,” added Schaub, who’s partnered with the wellness brand ATHLETC. “The newcomers to the sport who jumped on during COVID because it was the only sport on go, ‘Oh, Jon’s scared of Tom.’ He’s not scared. He literally just doesn’t give a —-. He’s done it all.

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“Now you want him to fight this young lion and Jon’s like, ‘It just doesn’t get me out of bed. I fought everybody. I’m the greatest to ever do it.’ So I think if Alex gets past Ankalaev, you’re going to see Alex versus Tom.

“Tom in all likelihood should win that fight unless he gets caught. And if Tom beats Alex – who’s UFC’s biggest star right now – that would maybe be the motivation to get Jon to accept the fight. Because right now it’s not happening. There’s just not enough incentive for Jon to fight him.”