‘I’ll Fight Both Of Them In The Same Night’
Photo by Richard Sellers/PA Images via Getty Images
Tom Aspinall is ready to go.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns for its annual Madison Square Garden show in New York City with UFC 309 when undisputed Heavyweight champion, Jon Jones, will defend against Stipe Miocic on Nov. 16, 2024. Perhaps the most excited about this news is the interim titleholder, Aspinall.
The division has been stalled thanks to Jones’ arrival in March 2023. The former two-time Light Heavyweight kingpin and all-time great claimed the vacant title with his impressive two-minute guillotine over Ciryl Gane (watch highlights) at UFC 285. Having not fought since, Jones has maintained his insistence on battling Miocic despite his injury and the coronation of the interim champion, Aspinall. Regardless of the extended wait for the Brit, he’s ready to go if his services are once again needed on short notice.
“What else happened there was big Jon Jones, big Stipe Miocic matched up with one another,” Aspinall said on his YouTube channel (h/t MMA Fighting). “Finally, it’s official. Nov. 16, MSG, New York City. The Heavyweight title is on the line at long last. Finally. We are confirmed for it.
“I, of course, will be there to watch these two gentlemen go at it,” he continued. “I, of course, have told the UFC if anybody gets injured or for any other reason why nobody can make it to that fight, why one of them might pull out, I’m ready to go. If I need to, I’ll fight both of them in the same night, no problem.”
Aspinall, 31, recently made his first successful title defense as the interim champion when he rematched Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304 in July 2024. In his typical quick fashion, Aspinall put away Blaydes with strikes in exactly 60 seconds (watch highlights).
The interim champion made it clear before the fight that he wasn’t going to defend his placeholder crown beyond Blaydes. He’s ready and waiting for the label to get upgraded.
“Give me my undisputed title, because, in my opinion, it should not be two champions in one weight division,” Aspinall said. “I think that is silly. This is not what the UFC is about, this is not what MMA is about. There’s one guy in each weight division, and I believe it’s me. So I’ll be fighting the winner.
“As I said, I’ll be there if they need me,” he continued. “I’ll be fit and ready. I’m training right now. I’m ready to go, I’ll be going to go on the 16th of November if I need to. MSG, the place where I won the title. I’ll go back there and I’ll unify the title there as well if I need to.”
