Former Jon Jones opponent thinks ‘Bones’ is trolling Tom Aspinall by stalling

Has Jon Jones worn Tom Aspinall out?

Much has been made over the holdup in the UFC heavyweight division. Jones has been the champion since March 2023, but he’s only had one title defense. He has yet to face Aspinall, who has held the interim gold since Nov. 2023. Aspinall even has his own successful title defense.

While Aspinall was having a bit of fun with the wild goose chase initially, he’s grown tired of being on the sidelines in the prime of his career.

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Did Jon Jones Troll Tom Aspinall?

A former opponent of Jon Jones, Anthony Smith, was recently a desk analyst for ESPN’s “UFC Live.” During the show, “Lionheart” explained why he thinks Jones is a “master manipulator,” who may have forced Tom Aspinall to play right into his hands (via MMAJunkie).

“Jon doesn’t care about any of that, Smith said. “The person who cares the least in every negotiation, wins. Jon Jones does not care what Tom Aspinall wants and, in fact, wants to do the complete opposite of what Tom Aspinall wants. If Jon and Tom want the exact same thing, then Jon doesn’t want it anymore, and that’s how Jon is going to operate. It’s one of the most exhausting things that I’ve ever had to deal with, and I have to respect it. Jon is the master at emotionally and mentally exhausting people, and you can see it in Tom Aspinall a little bit already. He’s starting to get tired.”

There are still unanswered questions at heavyweight. Fans aren’t used to seeing a UFC champion hold up a division, as the promotion usually forces title vacancies if needed. A recent example of this was Islam Makhachev vacating the lightweight gold in favor of moving up to challenge Jack Della Maddalena.

We’ll continue to keep you posted on the latest involving the drama within the UFC’s heavyweight division.