If Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall doesn’t happen, Michael Bisping thinks UFC should strip ‘Bones’ of title

Michael Bisping thinks the UFC should strongly consider stripping Jon Jones of the heavyweight title if he avoids Tom Aspinall.

Jones is the reigning champion at heavyweight. While he hasn’t had a fight since March 2023 due to injury, he’ll be back inside the Octagon this weekend. “Bones” will put his gold at stake against Stipe Miocic inside Madison Square Garden in New York City on November 16th.

Aspinall waits in the wings as the interim titleholder, but Jones isn’t too keen on a title unification bout.

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Michael Bisping Says Jon Jones Must Face Tom Aspinall or Risk Losing UFC Gold

During a recent interview with Kevin Iole, Jon Jones revealed that a fight with Tom Aspinall doesn’t excite him. “Bones” questioned what a win over Aspinall does for him, and said he’d rather fight UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira.

Michael Bisping has taken exception to Jones’ comments, and he hopped on YouTube to respond (h/t MMAJunkie).

“The reality is Jon Jones is now the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world, and when he fights Stipe Miocic, if he is victorious, then he has to face Tom Aspinall next,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel. “This is just the way the world works, OK?”

Bisping said that if Jones defeats Stipe Miocic and continues his career without fighting Aspinall, then “Bones” should be stripped of the heavyweight title.

“If he doesn’t, this is in the words of Khabib Nurmagomedov: ‘No. 1 bullsh*t,’” Bisping said. “If he refuses to fight Tom Aspinall next, then we’ve got to start having a serious conversation as to whether or not this man should be stripped.

“Jon is the undisputed champion of the world. Tom is the interim champion. This is how it works: They face one another. He’s calling out Alex Pereira for a legacy fight. … I’m not saying this as a Jon Jones hater, but if this was boxing, Jon Jones will be stripped. That’s a fact.”

Time will tell if Jones will ever share the Octagon with Aspinall, but for the immediate future, his focus is on Miocic.