Former UFC star Marc Diakiese has urged heavyweight champion Jon Jones to retire from the sport amid talks of a showdown with Tom Aspinall.
Ahead of Jones’ title defence against MMA icon Stipe Miocic last November, the American teased that he would walk away from the sport after the clash. ‘Bones’ would go on to produce a dominant performance, knocking the former champion out in the third round. The 37-year-old then hinted that he would stick around for one more fight in order to give the fans what they want.
Aspinall hasn’t stepped foot in the cage since defending his interim strap last July against Curtis Blaydes. The British star is regarded as the best heavyweight on the planet, and fans have begged UFC supremo Dana White to make the undisputed clash between the Salford scrapper and Jones.
However, in an interview with Mirror Fighting, Diakiese – now plying his trade in the PFL – has advised Jones to call it a day following his flawless win over Miocic. “For me, what Jon Jones has achieved and what he has done, I think he should just walk away. Tom Aspinall is young and fresh, he’s hungry. Jon Jones has done it all. He doesn’t need to be facing guys that are young and hungry at that level,” he said.
“He’s done everything… he’s fought all the top guys you could possibly think of like Rampage (Jackson), Lyoto (Machida), all the top guys. He’s fought them, so he doesn’t need to prove anything, he can just retire. He’s got the heavyweight belt… leave it! If it was me and I was fighting him, I’d make sure I was getting paid big money before I leave.”
White, the UFC president, is eager to make the fight happen and recently provided a slight update on the superfight, teasing that it’s likely that the pair will face-off inside the cage. In an interview with Piers Morgan, the American was quizzed on the topic of Aspinall. When told he wants to face the heavyweight champion, White replied: “He wants to fight everybody.”
White’s answer prompted Morgan to reply: “He thinks he’ll beat Jon Jones.” The UFC president was then quick to sing the British fighter’s praises, saying: “I love that! A young, aggressive heavyweight that he actually wants to fight all the best. The problem in this business is you have a lot of guys who say things publicly, but behind the curtains don’t mean it, don’t really want these fights. Tom Aspinall is not that guy. Tom Aspinall wants to fight all the best in the world and I love that.”
Pushing further on the topic, Morgan then asked White how good Aspinall really is, before the 55-year-old teased the potential showdown with Jones. “Very good,” he said. “We’re going to find out, though. We make this Jon Jones fight… obviously, a fight like that for a young and talented heavyweight and if he can win and he can beat Jon Jones, it’s life-changing.” He added: “If you’re a fighter, you better have that. That’s what you have to have. If you want to be one of the all time greats, that’s exactly what you have to have.”
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