Latest news with #UFC304
Time of India
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
'Don't think his ego could handle that' - UFC Hall of Famer reveals rival Jon Jones' thought process amid enraged fans' demand to strip the title
UFC Hall of Famer and former UFC two-weight champion Daniel Cormier shared one of the greatest rivalries in the promotion's history with the current heavyweight champion, Jon Jones . The rivalry was not just limited to the Octagon fights but also included brawls during media appearances and wars of words. Even though the enmity has somewhat settled down in recent times, it wouldn't be wrong to say that the fighters have a psychological understanding of each other owing to the past shared between them and this makes Cormier believe that Jones' ego is the very element that would ensure a heavyweight title bout between Bones and Tom Aspinall amid the ongoing fan demand to strip Jones of his title . Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Former rival Daniel Cormier vouches for Jon Jones' return to the Octagon, claims that the fighter will definitely face Tom Aspinall The title unification bout between the current UFC heavyweight interim champion, Tom Aspinall, and the heavyweight champion, Jon Jones, is taking forever to be announced. Fans believe that Jones is the one responsible for the delay, as they speculate that there might be a chance the heavyweight veteran might be ducking the fight. Recently, the fighter even teased retirement through a conversation with a fellow fighter, which has instigated the fans into launching a petition to strip Jones of his belt. The fighter had a rather calm response to the entire petition issue. While talking about the laid-back attitude of the fighter, one of his biggest UFC rivals, Daniel Cormier, in a recent episode of The Funky and The Champ, put forward his opinion on the ongoing narrative and the possible step by Bones. 'I don't know that he vacates without fighting Tom, because I think the visual, and the lasting thought would be that 'He ran from him.'' Cormier stated, 'And I don't think his ego could handle that he ran from someone.' Daniel Cormier & Ben Askren REACT to Jon Jones avoiding Tom Aspinall, Merab broken toe, O'Malley The UFC Hall of Famer emphasised the fact that public image is something that matters to Jones a lot. 'The idea that people would think he's afraid means more to him than going out there and fighting him and taking the chance. Especially when there's a real possibility that he just outclasses Tom Aspinall. I think he will fight him, I don't think they'll need to strip him, he'll fight him.' Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Cormier further added, 'He could walk away and go 'I'm the best, I don't need to do anything else'. But the idea that he ran, is going to be too strong of a pull for him as he goes into the next phase of his career.' Also read: After claiming the interim heavyweight belt, Aspinall fought and defended the title once against Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304. The wait for the unification bout after Jones defended his title against Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 has made Aspinall the longest-reigning interim champion in the history of the promotion.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Sport
- Time of India
Tom Aspinall crushes fan expectations while taking an unapologetic shot at the UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones - 'Living my best life'
Tom Aspinall. Photo by Richard Sellers/PA Images via Getty Images The heavyweight championship bout between Tom Aspinall and Jon Jones seems to be going nowhere, even after the interim heavyweight champion's recent cryptic Instagram post. Fueling the expectation of the fans , Aspinall, on May 26, posted a video about an upcoming announcement, which was interpreted as the much-anticipated heavyweight championship bout. However, the fighter immediately shot down the possibilities through his replies on the post, which were also an indirect and unapologetic dig at the Bones. Tom Aspinall becomes the longest-reigning interim heavyweight champion in the history of UFC , denies immediate possibilities of a title unification bout A major shakeup for UFC 295 was announced after Jon Jones had to pull out from his fight against Stipe Miocic in a title defense bout. The fight was replaced with another one featuring Tom Aspinall against Sergei Pavlovich for the UFC interim heavyweight championship belt. Aspinall dominated the Octagon to become the interim champion and even defended the belt against Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304. Months later, Jones stepped back into the Octagon and defended his heavyweight championship belt against Stipe Miocic. Usually, in such a scenario, a title unification bout is arranged between the interim champion and the champion of the division in order to decide upon one titleholder. Even though it has been quite a few months since the Bones stepped back into the Octagon, there has been no major development in fixing a date for the unification bout. The long wait has got both Aspinall and the fans to an extent where petitions are being issued in order to strip Jones of his belt. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Trade Bitcoin & Ethereum – No Wallet Needed! IC Markets Start Now Undo Up until now, the petition has received over 100,000 signatures. Recently, the English fighter also resorted to his social media account and posted a video teasing an announcement on May 28, 2025. Immediately, fans speculated about the much-awaited announcement for the title unification bout. However, the expectations were dismissed immediately when Aspinall replied to his post, negating the possibilities of such an announcement. Aspinall initially captioned the post as, 'Heavyweight news. Coming soon ⏳' Soon enough, after a significant number of engagements on the post, the fighter commented, 'UFC announce my fights guys not me'. The comment was followed by another one, which was an unapologetic dig at Jones's recent line of posts on X. Aspinall wrote, 'Sorry guys I'm fighting for a new belt. Interim of the interim BMF UFC heavyweight title. Living my best life' While fans have started speculating about Jones' retirement from the sport, the fighter subtly dismissed the chances, saying that he has had breaks previously in his career, and it is just one of them. The fighter is currently enjoying his life in Thailand and shows no sign of any announcement on short notice. Also read: UFC play-by-play commentator reveals major Octagon plans for former welterweight champion Belal Muhammad The wait for the unification bout has made Tom Aspinall the longest-reigning interim champion in the history of UFC. Despite several callouts and claims of ducking the fight, Jon Jones seems unbothered and is handling the allegation very calmly through his social media account on X. Get IPL 2025 match schedules , squads , points table , and live scores for CSK , MI , RCB , KKR , SRH , LSG , DC , GT , PBKS , and RR . Check the latest IPL Orange Cap and Purple Cap standings.
USA Today
5 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Coach Ray Longo: UFC should strip Jon Jones to be fair to Tom Aspinall, fans
Coach Ray Longo: UFC should strip Jon Jones to be fair to Tom Aspinall, fans Coach Ray Longo thinks the UFC should strip Jon Jones of the heavyweight title to be fair to interim champ Tom Aspinall and the fans. Judging by recent social media posts and comments, Jones (28-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC) has been "living his best life" while leading the public to believe he has no intention of ever fighting Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC). Jones won the vacant heavyweight title at UFC 285 in March 2023 and has only defended the title once against a since-retired Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 in November. Meanwhile, Aspinall won an interim title at UFC 295 in November 2023 and recorded a rare interim defense at UFC 304 last July. "I'm almost starting to think he's doing it because he can do it, you know?" Longo said on the "Anik & Florian Podcast." "It's like, why does a dog lick its balls? Because it can. It seems like it's a power thing. Like it's, 'We're gonna do this on my timeline and you can't do anything about it.' That's what it seems like to me." Aspinall has repeatedly stated he doesn't want to necessarily fight Jones, but rather he wants the opportunity to become an undisputed champion and begin his title reign. All the while, Jones appears less than interested in giving Apsinall the chance to unify the titles. "That sucks for the fans and that sucks for the UFC," Longo said. "That's why I say I think he's the type of guy, 'I'm gonna do what I want to do, and I don't give a f*ck what you think.' I think that's who he is and that's what he's doing right now. He's holding the power, and that's how he decides to use it. "... The UFC can't do anything. They should strip him of the title. I don't think it's fair to Tom Aspinall. This poor guy's been waiting – he'll be waiting for 15 years before he sees the title. Is that right?" Lead UFC commentator Jon Anik rebutted by saying he believes Jones isn't concerned with being stripped of the title, because if he's going to fight on his timeline, he'll still command the same money, champion or not, and will have the luxury of competing when he's ready. At the same time, Aspinall potentially gets worn down by taking on other fights. Kenny Florian added that the UFC may be in a position where keeping the title around Jones' waist may be more beneficial than not. "You know, Kenny, the only reason I'm going to agree with you is because if you were wrong, they would have did it already," Longo said. "This is a great example of, 'I'm gonna do what's best for me.' If everybody does what's best for them, nothing will f*cking get done, trust me. Somebody's got to be the caretaker and get in there, because that's it. I'll do what's best for me, I'll do what's best for me – and you know what's gonna happen? Nothing. This is what's gonna happen. I think that's where being selfish like that is total bullsh*t. Good luck dealing with that guy. I don't know. The fans suffer, that's what really happens."
Time of India
6 days ago
- Sport
- Time of India
UFC play-by-play commentator reveals major Octagon plans for former welterweight champion Belal Muhammad
Belal Muhammad and Jon Anik. Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images UFC play-by-play commentator Jon Anik made a big revelation as he opened up on former welterweight champion Belal Muhammad 's future move within the Octagon . While his reign in the welterweight division was put to an end by Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315, Muhammad aims at bouncing back and climbing the ladder once again to reach the top of the division. After the devastating loss, the fighter will now face the undefeated fighter of the division, Shavkat Rakhmonov, in order to restart the journey of securing the belt once again. Belal Muhammad is rumored to face the undisputed UFC welterweight contender Shavkat Rakhmonov, plans to conquer the title once again Weeks removed from the devastating loss faced by Belal Muhammad at UFC 315 via a unanimous decision, rumors have started resurfacing about a possible bout between the former welterweight and Shavkat Rakhmonov, the undefeated fighter with a pro-MMA record of 19-0-0. After winning the belt at UFC 304 against Leon Edwards, Muhammad was initially supposed to defend the belt against Rakhmonov at UFC 310. However, due to an unexpected bone infection on his foot, Muhammad had to withdraw from the fight. While fans remained excited for a bout between the two fighters upon Muhammad's return, they instead met with a surprise when the fighter was paired up against Jack Della Maddalena in UFC 315. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Giao dịch CFD với công nghệ và tốc độ tốt hơn IC Markets Đăng ký Undo With the fight being over now and Muhammad losing his belt, fans speculated about a possible opponent for his next bout. Muhammad's loss made it convenient for former lightweight champion Islam Makhachev to vacate his belt and move up the weight division. The Dagestani fighter will be facing Della Maddalena for a title run towards the end of this year. Since both Makhachev and Muhammad dismissed the possibility of facing each other, the latter will now be focusing on other top contenders in the division in order to secure a title run later. Fueling the fan speculation and the hope to see Muhammad and Rakhmonov go against each other finally after months of withdrawals and delays, UFC commentator Jon Anik, in a recent episode of the Anik and Florian podcast, revealed the next opponent for Muhammad's quest. Anik stated, 'We will see what Shavkat Rakhmonov has for him in October. Belal vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov in October. There's your breaking news.' Also read: Belal Muhammad breaks silence on shocking circumstances behind UFC 315 title loss - 'I am going to live with that' It seems the UFC 315 setback was nothing but just a minor inconvenience for Belal Muhammad's journey as a pro MMA fighter. The former welterweight looks forward to kickstarting his title run once again and if what Anik said is legit, fans can expect an announcement shortly from the UFC. Get IPL 2025 match schedules , squads , points table , and live scores for CSK , MI , RCB , KKR , SRH , LSG , DC , GT , PBKS , and RR . Check the latest IPL Orange Cap and Purple Cap standings.
USA Today
6 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Muhammad Mokaev names one fighter who could dethrone UFC champ Alexandre Pantoja
Muhammad Mokaev names one fighter who could dethrone UFC champ Alexandre Pantoja Undefeated flyweight Muhammad Mokaev believes UFC champion Alexandre Pantoja has the rest of the division mentally defeated, with the exception of one fighter. Pantoja (29-5 MMA, 13-3 UFC) is not-so-quietly on one of the most impressive runs in the sport, with three title defenses under his belt, and a potential fourth just over a month away. Since most of the top flyweights have been hanging around in the rankings for years, Pantoja has already faced and defeated half of the current top 10, while sending others out of the top 15. Mokaev understands the familiarity, which he believes gives Pantoja a mental edge. "You know, the flyweight division, the guys been in the division for a long time," Mokaev said in an interview with Chael Sonnen. "I've been a fan of Tim Elliott. 2017, I watched his fight live against Demetrious Johnson. He was 'Ultimate Fighter' winner. Then, I fought myself in 2023 against Tim Elliott. So, those guys have been in that division for so long. "If you start in that division, growing up with them, you're going to read them. You watch the fights, you already like – it feels like your neighbors. So, he already read them, and so he basically just have to get in shape and perform, that's it. Mentally, Pantoja is in their heads." Mokaev believes there's only one fighter currently on the UFC's flyweight roster who could dethrone Pantoja – and it's someone he has first-hand experience against. "Only guy I think who can beat Pantoja right now in the division, I would say, is Manel Kape," Mokaev said. It's a matchup that could come together soon, and it wouldn't be the first time Pantoja and Kape met inside the octagon. Pantoja won a unanimous decision against Kape in 2021, a victory that kickstarted his run to capturing the flyweight title. For Kape, the result was the first of back-to-back losses that year. He has since rebounded to go 6-1, and currently has a No. 1 contender fight on the books against former title challenger Brandon Royval at UFC 317. Mokaev also mixed it up with Kape, winning a unanimous decision at UFC 304, so he knows what it takes to deal with "Starboy." For Mokaev, as he continues his career outside of the UFC, his main focus right now is to continue evolving his striking. Should he ever receive the call to return to the UFC, he intends to be a more well-rounded fighter with the threat of wrestling always ready as a backup plan.
