If the UFC heavyweight division have been a actuality present, it could be referred to as “Preserving Up with the Heavyweights” – and Jon Jones can be the star who by no means fairly reveals as much as the reunion episode.
Who’s the Actual King? Jon Jones, Tom Aspinall, and Francis Ngannou’s Heavyweight Drama
Let’s set the stage: Jon Jones, the reigning UFC heavyweight champ, is the king of trolling each on social media and within the octagon. Tom Aspinall, the British interim champ, has been holding his “short-term” belt for therefore lengthy that he’s set a UFC file for the longest interim reign – over 530 days and counting, which is principally a UFC eternity. After which there’s Francis Ngannou, the lineal UFC heavyweight champion who moonlights because the PFL kingpin and is seemingly open to a UFC return, simply to spice issues up.
Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou Conform to Match
On Twitter, the UFC heavyweight champ Jon Jones mentioned:
“I’m listening to Francis Ngannou continues to be … now we’re speaking. That’s an actual tremendous combat. A conflict of champions, not simply hype. He held the UFC belt, I’ve defended mine for over a decade. Two kings from completely different roads. Not only one legend dealing with a mouth that’s sizzling proper now, however two actual legacies colliding. That’s the sort of combat that really provides one thing particular to my story. Not less than from my standpoint.”
The UFC lineal and PFL champion Francis Ngannou Responded:
“You handle the UFC, I’ll handle the PFL, and we’ll lastly discover out who’s the KING OF THE HEAVYWEIGHT. “
Jones, recent off a win in opposition to Stipe Miocic, was speculated to unify the belts with Aspinall. As an alternative, he’s been busy on X (previously Twitter), throwing shade at Aspinall’s credentials and grappling expertise – famously mocking the English black belt as “like getting a participation ribbon”. When pressed about preventing Aspinall, Jones quipped he’d win “by not even giving him the prospect,” and gleefully dubbed himself “Duck boy” as he threatened at hand over the belt simply to spite his followers.
In the meantime, the MMA world is shedding endurance. A fan petition demanding Jones be stripped of his title has racked up over 185,000 signatures, proving that if Jones is making an attempt to interrupt information, he’s succeeding, in fan frustration.
Tom Aspinall, for his half, has been left in championship limbo. He defended his interim belt in spectacular vogue, however the elusive Jones has stored him ready so lengthy that Aspinall’s interim reign is now the longest in UFC historical past. Aspinall himself has began to sound like he’s ready for a bus that may by no means come, even suggesting Jones is already retired and the UFC will quickly need to decide in regards to the division’s future.
Simply while you thought the plot couldn’t thicken, Francis Ngannou’s coach revealed that “The Predator” is open to returning to the UFC. Jones instantly perked up, calling a combat with Ngannou a “actual super-fight” and insisting it could do extra for his legacy than dealing with Aspinall.
Jon Jones is teasing retirement, trolling his rivals, and flirting with a Francis Ngannou combat whereas Aspinall waits within the wings, interim belt gathering mud. Ngannou, in the meantime, is the lineal champion in exile, able to return if the value (and the drama) is true.
For now, the heavyweight division stays in limbo, with followers, fighters, and even the UFC brass left guessing what Jon Jones will do subsequent.
