Over the previous two years, Tom Aspinall has racked up a formidable 3-0 document however he’s solely spent a complete of three minutes and 22 seconds within the octagon because of a sequence of rapid-fire first-round finishes.
Proper now, Aspinall is sitting within the sidelines awaiting his subsequent task with hopes that he’ll get a title unification bout in opposition to Jon Jones however July would mark one 12 months since his final look within the UFC. The 32-year-old interim champion has grown agitated whereas taking part in the ready recreation with no clear indication on when Jones would possibly determine he needs to struggle once more or not.
That’s why retired UFC welterweight Matt Brown would supply Aspinall the identical recommendation he gave to Michael Chandler when he spent two years out of motion ready for a struggle in opposition to Conor McGregor that in the end by no means occurred.
“I take a look at that similar to the [Michael] Chandler state of affairs with Conor [McGregor]. Simply go struggle, bro,” Brown stated on The Fighter vs. The Author. “Preserve your identify on the market. Preserve displaying that you’re the person to struggle him. Preserve constructing your legacy. Preserve your identify out within the information. Preserve displaying the world that you just the man that ought to be preventing him.
“If it’s true, then your case goes to get stronger and stronger. In the event you’re sitting on the sidelines, it doesn’t actually assist your case as a lot.”
Brown believes inactivity actually is the worst enemy for any fighter as a result of time is the one luxurious no one will get again.
In Chandler’s state of affairs, he by no means regretted his choice to sit down and watch for McGregor as a result of he acquired fixed assurances from the UFC that the struggle was going to occur. When it was clear that McGregor wasn’t coming again in a well timed style, Chandler moved onto a special struggle however he’s since gone 0-2 with lopsided losses to each Charles Oliveira and Paddy Pimblett.
In fact, Brown understands the magnitude relating to a possible showdown in opposition to Jones, who’s arguably the best fighter in MMA historical past, however he additionally is aware of Aspinall good points nothing by simply holding out hope that the struggle would possibly occur.
“I simply come from a special faculty [of thought],” Brown defined. “Perhaps it’s an old-fashioned factor simply me personally, once I was preventing or what I’d counsel for others to do is go forward and struggle as a lot as you’ll be able to, struggle one of the best guys you’ll be able to and see how issues work out. That’s not all the time one of the best ways to go about enterprise and essentially one of the best ways to earn cash however look you solely reside as soon as. You’re going to [look back] at 50 or 60 years previous, retired and be like ‘that entire 12 months I used to be out or the 2 years I used to be out, I want I’d have fought.’ I take into consideration stuff like that.
“That’s why I’d advise one thing like that however I completely get the enterprise facet, too. You’ve bought to get the most important struggle you’ll be able to and never take all the chance to get there essentially.”
As a lot because the UFC maintains management over the fighters and the fights that get made, Jones is in distinctive state of affairs the place he really instructions lots of energy proper now because the heavyweight champion and one of many greatest attracts left within the promotion.
There have been requires Jones to get stripped of his title however he’s at the moment solely been out of motion for six months so until he’s actually executed with preventing, it appears unlikely the UFC would take the belt away from him.
The uncertainty is troubling however Brown seems like that’s a state of affairs of the UFC’s personal making, particularly with none form of precedent set as much as clarify why Jones is allowed to sit down and wait with none repercussions.
“They’re not going to strip him both,” Brown stated. “I want there was only a rule set in stone. Like for those who don’t defend on this period of time, you’re stripped. That’s the best way it ought to be. Sadly, it’s simply as much as the PR guys and Dana [White] and I’m certain they sit down and have conferences and speak about it. There’s simply no normal. No tips.
“We’re all dwelling within the UFC’s world and it simply sort of goes the best way they need it to go. You may make an argument both approach whether or not he ought to be stripped or not but it surely’s like in the end the UFC simply decides. The argument is sort of irrelevant.”
If Aspinall chooses to struggle slightly than watch for Jones, he has choices accessible to him even when the matchups aren’t as fairly as compelling.
That’s not the case for Jones, nonetheless, as Brown argues the most important issue working in Aspinall’s favor proper now could be that if the UFC heavyweight champion ever fights once more, there’s just one struggle in his future and that’s it.
“So long as he fights Aspinall, if he retains preventing,” Brown stated about Jones. “Nonetheless lengthy he waits, we are able to speak about that recreation all day but when he comes again and fights once more, it simply needs to be Tom Aspinall. I don’t assume we’re going to essentially respect some other struggle than Tom Aspinall at this level.
“That’s sort of the state of affairs we’re in. You might be caught with Tom Aspinall for those who’re going to maintain preventing. Some individuals are saying he’s ducking or no matter, effectively if he was ducking him, we’re going to seek out out as a result of there’s no different struggle on the market.”
