UFC veteran Matt Brown doesn’t believe Jones’s refusal to battle Tom Aspinall will spoil his legacy.
UFC heavyweight fighter Jon Jones is regarded as the greatest pound-for-pound fighter in MMA history. The fighter has had a remarkable career and plans to make his big bow after he battles Stipe Miocic.
Jones appears to have more gas in his tank and has recently been called out by interim heavyweight champ Tom Aspinall. Many believe he should face Aspinall– who stepped up to face Sergei Pavlovich after Jones suffered an injury in 2023 and was forced to pull out. Despite fans wanting to see this face-off, UFC veteran Matt Brown doesn’t feel a battle between the two champs is necessary.
In an interview with The Fighter vs. The Writer, Brown disclosed that Jones’s legacy remains untainted regardless of his compliance with fighting Aspinall.
“The fact is, it will be forgotten,” Brown said on The Fighter vs. The Writer. “No matter what Tom does. If Jon retires after he beats Stipe, we’re in the age of news is news for a day. Maybe for a day or two, there will be some people on Reddit saying Jon was scared of Tom or whatever.
“By next week or whatever … he’ll still be the greatest ever. No one’s going to be like, ‘Oh, Jon’s not the greatest ever because he didn’t fight Tom Aspinall.’ I don’t think a single person’s going to say that. They’re just going to talk a little bit of silly stuff for a couple of days and it will be completely forgotten. Just like [Georges St-Pierre].”
“Next week, it was all forgotten,” Brown said. “I didn’t even remember that he turned down to fight Robert Whittaker. I didn’t even remember that being talked about at the time. And I was deep in the sport at that point.
“It’s just one of those things where everybody loves to put their own little opinions on things for a day or two. And it’s forgotten about the next day.”
Although there is no indication if this fight will ever happen, Aspinall will keep pushing for it. The interim champion believes he is the greatest heavyweight champion and feels the only way to prove who the real heavyweight champ is is to battle Jones.
“Correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t remember Jon ever saying. ‘I’m out here now to try to be the greatest heavyweight,’” Brown said. “He’s like, ‘I’m the greatest fighter, I got that in the bag. I’m the greatest fighter of all time. I’m going to fight a couple of heavyweight fights. Yeah, I might be a little bit picky about who I fight. I’m the greatest fighter of all time, bitch. I get to pick my fights now.’
“I don’t remember him ever saying, ‘I’m out here to attempt to prove I can also be the greatest heavyweight.’ He’s like, ‘No, I’m moving up to get a couple paydays, getting some big fights, having some fun, not have to cut weight, and move on with my life.”
Whether Jones dismantles Miocic in November or not, Brown admits his opinion of the former light heavyweight champion won’t change.
Brown believes the champ has earned the right to call the shots in his own fights, and this doesn’t diminish his career. Although he does agree that Jones may have tainted his legacy through past actions. Brown expects that Aspinall is ultimately nothing more than a distraction that won’t last forever.
“He’s the greatest,” Brown said of Jones. “The only debate about whether he’s the greatest or not is when you talk about the banned substances. That’s literally the only argument you have against it. I don’t think there’s any other argument. We all know Jon is the greatest of all-time.”
Jones is set to appear in the octagon in November at UFC 309, and fans cannot wait to see “Bones” battle it out with Miocic.
