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Tom Aspinall had a long-awaited encounter with Jon Jones at the Arnold Sports Festival in Birmingham, England, on Saturday, marking their first face-to-face meeting. The meeting, which occurred while Jones was interacting with fans and taking photos, was a significant moment for Aspinall, who holds the interim UFC heavyweight title, while Jones is the undisputed champion.
Aspinall has been vocal about his desire to fight Jones ever since winning the interim belt with a knockout victory over Sergei Pavlovich. However, Jones has been focused on recovering from a torn pectoral muscle and waiting for a chance to face Stipe Miocic.
During their brief meeting at the sports festival, Aspinall asked Jones,
"Are we going to do this thing?" to which Jones responded positively, saying, "I would hope so."
Aspinall then requested a photo, but Jones declined his request for a faceoff. Despite this, the encounter appeared to be friendly, with Aspinall expressing his respect for Jones and his desire to face him one day.
Jones, on the other hand, mentioned that he is healing slowly but steadily and is aiming for a return to action later this year. While there is no set timeline for his fight against Miocic, it is expected to take place before the end of the year.
Meanwhile, Aspinall is staying busy and has accepted a challenge from Curtis Blaydes, who defeated him in 2022 due to a knee injury. Blaydes recently scored a second-round knockout victory over Jailton Almeida, but it remains to be seen if the UFC will book the rematch between Aspinall and Blaydes.