November 12, 2023 11:00 am ET
NEW YORK – Proper now, two males maintain gold within the UFC heavyweight division, however one among them isn’t in line for the subsequent undisputed title shot.
At UFC 295, Tom Aspinall stunned many when he toppled towering Russian contender Sergei Pavlovich with a TKO stoppage in Spherical 1 that earned him the interim title.
The struggle was a last-minute substitute for the beforehand scheduled undisputed title struggle between champion Jon Jones and former champion Stipe Miocic.
Regardless of Aspinall’s thrilling efficiency on two weeks’ discover, UFC CEO Dana White stated the promotion’s plans will revert again to the Level A, although Jones is on the shelf as he recovers from a torn pectoral muscle. Aspinall (14-3 MMA, 7-1 UFC) should wait.
“You do these two,” White stated of Jones and Miocic. “These two each deserve that struggle. That’s the struggle they need. What I really like is that Jon Jones, as quickly as he heard he was injured and he knew how dangerous it was, went proper to LA, acquired the surgical procedure, and he’s already in rehab – bodily remedy, I ought to say.”
Whereas the subsequent undisputed title struggle will probably be Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) vs. Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC), White didn’t rule out Aspinall may defend the interim title within the meantime.
“I don’t know,” White stated. “We’ll see how that performs out. We’ll see what occurs. (Aspinall) took this struggle on brief discover. Clearly he seemed nice. He’s acquired loads of cash to relax out for a minute. We’ll see.”
The focused timeline for Jones’ return is June 2024. He’s hinted the struggle will doubtless be his final. As for Miocic, the long run is a little more clouded. White stated he not too long ago ate lunch with Miocic, who instructed him he wasn’t positive whether or not or not the struggle could be his final.
“‘I don’t even know,’” White stated Miocic instructed him. “‘All I care about proper now could be Jon Jones. It’s the one factor I’m centered on. I would like this struggle actually dangerous.”
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