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Jon Jones last entered the octagon at UFC 285 last March as he defeated Ciryl Gane via first-round submission to capture the vacant heavyweight title. He appeared set to defend the title for the first time against Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 last November, however, he was forced to withdraw from the bout after tearing the tendon that connects his pectoral muscle to the bone.
His injury opened the door for Tom Aspinall to emerge as interim heavyweight champion. 'Bones' is reportedly in line to defend his title against Miocic at UFC 309 in November and has hinted that he could retire after the bout. Serghei Spivac recently speculated that a heavyweight title unification bout will ultimately come down to what the UFC is willing to pay.
Speaking at the UFC on ESPN 61 media day, the No. 9-ranked heavyweight stated:
"First of all, I highly respect both of the guys on top, both of the champions. When it comes to Jon Jones, I can't judge him or say anything about his decision process because I haven't even accomplished half of the stuff in the sport that he has accomplished so he's willing to make whatever decisions he wants to make... If it happens that the two of them will fight, I think it's going to be an incredible event for the entire world of MMA and it's going to be an exciting fight. I'd be very interested to see it."
When asked if he believes Jones will unify the belt, provided that he gets past Miocic, Spivac responded:
"I think the question is how much they offer him, what the offer is going to be, but really it might happen and I think Jones has got plenty of powder left so he can still show himself well."
Check out Serghei Spivac's full comments on Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall below:
Jones had planned to retire after facing Miocic before his injury. In his time away from the octagon, however, he has teased that he could face Aspinall or Alex Pereira. 'Bones' revealed that he will not make a final decision on retirement until after UFC 309.
Dana White believes Jon Jones will face Tom Aspinall
Despite the uncertainty surrounding Jon Jones' future, Dana White believes he will ultimately face Tom Aspinall before walking away from mixed martial arts. Speaking to Kevin Iole, the UFC President stated:
"Jon Jones always loves to challenge himself, moved up to heavyweight. I don't know what Jon Jones will do after this fight, but I would be shocked if he didn't want to test himself against Aspinall."
Check out Dana White's comments below (starting at the 4:07 mark):
White labeled Jones as the best combat sports fighter of all time. It remains to be seen what route he will travel, provided that he can get past Stipe Miocic at UFC 309.
