Tom Aspinoll and his father are a little frustrated, waiting for a chance to compete with champion John Jones.
Interim UFC heavyweight champion Aspinall had to defend his interim belt against Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304 and saw Jones defend his championship for the first time against Stipe Miocic, who hadn’t competed in nearly four years.
Aspinall’s father expressed his frustration in a recent video.
“That’s stupid,” Aspinel said on his son’s YouTube channel. “I don’t know why the UFC doesn’t want Tom to fight anyone other than John Jones.
“‘Look,’ that’s the message they want Tom to give people. And we had a meeting with Hunter (Campbell) and they are about to try a fight with John Jones, but we are still in April to say “I’m going to fight” and “I’m not going to fight.”
“Why don’t you give him an answer as to whether he’s going to fight, even though he’s still sitting?”
As Aspinall is approaching a year without a fight, UFC CEO Dana White continues to express his confidence that the UFC can fight between Jones and Aspinall, but the MMA community continues to lose faith by that day.
With the idea of a fight to space with Jones, Aspine must help his son navigate the difficult seas regarding his next move.
“What else can he do?” Aspinel asked. “He can fight fewer people than John Jones, but that’s a fewer ranked people than John Jones, but that might miss the opportunity for him to fight John Jones, which is a big opportunity because he’s the champion and he’s the best he’s ever been.
“What other options did he sit? He could now fight a guy ranked 8th, but why should No. 1 fight No. 8? That’s a bit stupid to me.”
Of course, fighting for an indisputable heavyweight title with one of the greatest ever is a huge deal for Aspinall’s legacy and bank accounts, but waiting continues to spend Aspinall’s money, especially at the height of his career.
“It’s really a huge pain in my butt,” Aspineol said. “He’s a fighter and it’s really good to fight. He was the last three fights, and there were three fights: what it is and what it is, but we can do it in more battles.
“And this is alive. You need to make money from your life, especially while you’re healthy and healthy, not just sitting on your butt, but not always showing up for training.”