Dana White defends decision over Jon Jones vs Stipe Miocic fight insisting he won’t ‘disrespect the GREATEST heavyweight ever’… as he addresses whether Tom Aspinall will fight the winner
- Jones was forced to withdraw from his fight with Miocic last November due to injury
- The pair are expected to fight this year at UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden
- UFC President White has spoken about the fight and Aspinall’s role going forward
Dana White defended the anticipated November showdown between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic, questioning whether British UFC star Tom Aspinall would fight the winning side.
Jones and Miocic were originally scheduled to fight for the heavyweight title in the main event of UFC 295 last November.
However, Jones tore a pectoral muscle and the UFC decided to postpone the fight altogether rather than field reserve fighter Sergei Pavlovich against Miocic.
UFC 309 in November at Madison Square Garden has not yet been announced, but Jones and Miocic are expected to finally face off.
âWhat do I do?â White told the media, according to MMA Fighting, while addressing the negative reactions the fight has received.
Dana White has defended Jon Jones’ expected November match with Stipe Miocic
There has been a lot of criticism surrounding the fight, which was originally postponed last year after Jones (left) withdrew from his fight with Miocic (right) due to injury.
White says interim champion Tom Aspinall would fight Jones if the latter can beat Miocic
‘A guy who is considered the best heavyweight in the UFC, this fight is set up, Jon Jones gets injured, it’s not his fault. He needs to wait and get back to f***ing training camp. He was training.
‘Should I just take it away from Stipe and tell him to go to hell and sit out the next two years?
“If I did that, you guys would be like, ‘Oh, you fucked up the greatest heavyweight ever!’ and the f***ing fans would be like, ‘So I’m supposed to just shit on Stipe because Jon got injured and not fight the fight he was supposed to fight?’
Interim UFC heavyweight champion Aspinall believes he should be the next to fight for Jones’ heavyweight title, not Miocic.
âThe way I see it, I’m the best heavyweight in the world,â Aspinall said on the podcast âBelieve You Meâ with Michael Bisping and Anthony Smith.
“I don’t get the credit for it. They’re holding the belt hostage and Jon Jones loves it. He loves that Dana shows up for every interview possible [talking him up].
Speaking to Aspinall in the media, White said that Aspinall will not lose his equal to Jones as long as the latter beats Miocic.
“Aspinall is a young, tough guy,” White said. “He’s got plenty of time. These guys are going to fight in November and he’s going to fight Jon Jones if he wins, I almost guarantee it. And if Stipe wins, then we’ll find out what Aspinall’s going to do.”
White said he “didn’t want to show disrespect to the greatest heavyweight ever” by canceling the bout
White added: ‘I guarantee you this, if Stipe wins, Stipe retires. This will be Stipe’s last fight. So you, the media, are telling me to just tell Stipe to fuck off?
“Good luck Stipe, ride off into the sunset, go put out some fires and then it’s over for your buddy because Jon got hurt.” Or do I show this guy the respect that I should show him and give them both the fight that they want? That’s the position I’m in.
‘If Stipe was 32 years old, then yes, [an interim title fight] is probably what we’re doing. But this is probably Stipe’s last fight, win or lose, and I’m not going to disrespect the man. He took the fight, he was ready for the fight, and Jon got hurt.”