UFC heavyweight competition Curtis Blaydes is the last to put the pressure on Dana White to strip Jon Jones.
Seven months since Jones Stipe Miocic finished on UFC 309, a timeline for a potential Jones vs. Tom Aspinall Showdown foggy.
Jones, Aspinall and their teams have been talking to the UFC Brass for months to make the heavyweight title Unification Bout flourish. But in recent weeks Jones has repeatedly teased and Aspinall hinted that he has a date and location for his return fight, whether it is against Jones or another competition.
The double rival of Aspinall is one of those who are the current Jones vs. Aspinall Saga are tired of.
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Curtis Blaydes contributes to the growing calls for the UFC to strip Jon Jones
Alexander Volkov came out publicly and accused the UFC of it to grant Jones unfair 'privilege' by leaving the division in a holding pattern. Volkov is one of the many top candidates who have expressed frustration about how the UFC has treated the Jones situation.
White made the headlines earlier this week when he unveiled a two -week deadline for Jones vs. To book Aspinall, or the promotion will 'continue'. Aspinall has not participated since he was completed Curtis Blaydes to defend his interim rim at UFC 304.
The most recent opponent of Aspinall repeated the sentiment of Volkov in the state of the heavyweight division of the UFC.
During his UFC Baku Media Day conference, Blaydes went on Jones's constant interruption of the Octagon.
“He has the belt and refuses to fight against Aspinall, it stops the division, it makes it impossible for someone of us to have future projections,” said Blaydes about Jones. “How can I project when, who knows who the real belt has? The undisputed belt. We have to find out. And my answer is that you are stripping it, it's not that difficult. You have done it a number of times before.
“You strip him, and if that P – he is finished, maybe that will let him fight. If not, he will just retire, which is also good. He is the goat, he does not have to fight, but if he wants to hold that belt, he must fight.”
Jones won the then vacant UFC Heavyweight Title to submit Ciryl Gane to UFC 285 in 2023. Since then, Jones has only fought once and finished Miocic on UFC 309.
Jones and Miocic had UFC 295 heads before Jones withdrew due to an injury, which led to Aspinall opposite Sergei Pavlovich in an interim title competition with a short notice. Aspinall played Pavlovich in the first round.
Blaydes has fought three times since Jones's heavyweight win on UFC 285. He has lost two of his last three fights and returns this Saturday to UFC Baku against Rizvan Kuniev.
Petition for the UFC to strip Jon Jones closes to 200,000 signatures
While frustration continues to shoot around the interruption of Jones, a petition approaches to be stripped of his heavyweight title 200,000 signatures. Jones repeatedly rejected the petition and claimed that he does not care if the UFC travels him from his belt.
If Jones does not return in 2025, Aspinall will be confronted with another top candidate for the undisputed heavyweight championship. Gane, Volkov and Jilton Almeida are all potential options for the next opponent of Aspinall when the Jones fight falls through it.
While the International Fight Week event from the UFC is rapidly approaching, we are still waiting for answers to the states of Jones vs. Aspinall. An announcement by White and the matchmakers seems threatening.