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Jon Jones Recap: Next Fight, 'F*** You' Money, Tom Aspinall & Alex Pereira

Catch up with Jon Jones' latest remarks from his UFC 309 post-fight presser.

Zain Bando

Haljestam-MMA Junkie

UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones doesn't want to fight interim champ Tom Aspinall next.

Despite a third-round TKO win against Stipe Miocic, Jones has his sights set on bigger goals. Although the promotion wants to push Jones to unify the heavyweight title against Aspinall, Jones is interested in what he calls "established champions."

"I don’t want to fight dangerous up-and-comers anymore," Jones said. "I want to fight dangerous, established champions.”

One of those is light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, who successfully defended the title three times this year, all by KO/TKO against Jamahal Hill, Jiri Prochazka and Khalil Rountree Jr.

Pereira won the light heavyweight title after moving up from middleweight in the aftermath of a two-fight MMA series against now-former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.

Jones said he wants to dictate the end of his career on his own terms, whether it's compensation or who he fights.

"A very, very high number," Jones said. "I want to be compensated to the point where if I won or lost, that it really wouldn’t matter.”

Whether the UFC gives in remains to be seen, which, for Jones, is okay either way.

"If that was my last fight ever, then I’m cool with that,” Jones said.

Jon Jones Explains Why Tom Aspinall Doesn't Deserve To Fight Him

Even though Jones-Aspinall makes sense from a rankings and championship perspective, Jones said there is a deeper-rooted reason why the fight should not happen.

"There’s just a lot of people on his nuts right now… he’s annoying to me. And I just don’t like him," Jones said. "I don’t need him at all. He NEEDS me.”

Without disclosing specifics, Jones wants the Aspinall fight to be worthwhile, pulling back the curtain further.

"At the end of the day, if I give him the opportunity to fight me, I want to be so compensated. I want to say it, I want that f*** you money. Honestly. And that's just what it is. That's just what it is. Or else my life is perfect without him. I don't need him at all and he needs me. And that's a good place to be in a negotiation."

Let the negotiations continue.


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Zain Bando
ZAIN BANDO

Zain Bando is a writer for MMA Knockout, part of the Sports Illustrated/Minute Media umbrella. He has covered combat sports since 2019 for notable outlets BJPenn.com and FanSided MMA. He also co-hosts a podcast called "The MMA Outsiders," part of the Empty The Bench Podcast Network, which airs Tuesday nights at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT. A Chicago suburban native, Bando has been enthralled with MMA since 2006 and has been fortunate to attend some of the most high-profile events in the sport's history, both as a fan and media member, including UFC 264, Bellator 297 and Kayla Harrison's PFL MMA debut. He is excited to take the next step in his combat sports writing journey and looks forward to continuing his following of the fight game for years to come. Bando can be reached via email at zainbando99@gmail.com or by social media @zainbando99

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