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The long-awaited return of Jon Jones to the octagon might happen sooner than expected. UFC CEO Dana White recently confirmed that he is pushing for a heavyweight title unification fight between Jones and interim champion Tom Aspinall this summer.
Since his dominant victory over Stipe Miocic last November, Jones has been out of action, leaving fans eager for his next challenge. According to White, that challenge is set:
“The plan is to fight Jon this summer,” White told. “Obviously, when, where and all that stuff is being determined. My goal this year is to make that fight [with] Aspinall.”
With Aspinall holding the interim belt, this matchup could be one of the most highly anticipated heavyweight bouts in UFC history.
Meanwhile, Alex Pereira is gearing up for his light heavyweight title defense against Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313. If he secures another dominant win, he might not have many new contenders left at 205 pounds.
Pereira has openly expressed interest in moving up to heavyweight, but White has been cautious about letting him make the jump too soon.
“The other thing about Pereira that everybody loves is, this guy wants to go up to heavyweight and fight at heavyweight, too,” White said. “I’m the one that’s actually holding him back on that.”
While White is focused on making Jones vs. Aspinall happen first, he isn’t ruling out a future heavyweight showdown for Pereira. If Pereira wins at UFC 313, his path to a heavyweight debut could be clear.
“Let’s see how this fight plays out, if he wins, how he wins, all that kind of stuff,” White said. “I think that the fight that everybody wants to see right now is Jones and Aspinall and then there’s no doubt that Pereira could fight the winner.”
A potential matchup between Pereira and either Jones or Aspinall could be one of the biggest fights in UFC history. But first, the focus is on this summer—where Jones and Aspinall are set to clash for heavyweight supremacy.