UFC's Jon Jones Says He 'Could Really Care Less About Fighting' amid Aspinall Rumors

Despite being the reigning UFC heavyweight champion, Jon Jones suggested recently that fighting is not his top priority.

During an appearance on the Full Send Podcast (h/t MMAFighting.com's Damon Martin), which dropped Thursday, Jones did little to dispel the idea that his MMA career may be over:

"I don't want to say that I'm retired because fighting's in my blood. Right now, I could really care less about fighting. I've been doing it my whole life at a very high level and when the itch comes back—and if it comes back—then I'll do it with my whole heart, do it to the best of my abilities.

"But right now, I look around and realize what's true, what's real. I see the way people look at me and the way I make people feel and it's an extraordinary thing. It's a true blessing. Now my job is to serve that, give that to my fans, be reachable, touchable. Let them know what I have inside. That's who I am right now. I've punched and kicked enough people."

Jones' comments came amid a great deal of speculation regarding when or if Jones will face interim UFC heavyweight champ Tom Aspinall.

Thus far, Jones has been publicly noncommittal about the highly anticipated bout, while UFC president Dana White said Tuesday on the Jim Rome Show (h/t Martin) that he should know "in the next couple weeks" if Jones vs. Aspinall is on the table.

If not, White noted that he plans to "move on quickly" and find a different opponent for Aspinall.

Jones, 37, spent the bulk of his MMA career as a light heavyweight, but he transitioned to the heavyweight division in 2023.

In his first heavyweight bout, Jones beat Ciryl Gane for the vacant UFC heavyweight title at UFC 285, adding to a list of accolades that place him in the conversation as the greatest MMA fighter of all time.

Jones was supposed to have his first title defense against former UFC heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 in November 2023, but the bout was postponed due to Jones suffering a torn pectoral tendon.

At that same event, Aspinall beat Sergei Pavlovich to become the interim UFC heavyweight champion.

Aspinall retained the interim title in a win over Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304 last year, and Jones returned to action at UFC 309 in November, beating Miocic to retain and improve his career record to 28-1.

While Jones may be the greatest of all time, it is fair to wonder if the 32-year-old Aspinall is better right now.

Aspinall has a career record of 15-3 and he has won 11 of his past 12 bouts, including three in a row. Each of those three victories were by knockout.

Jones praised Aspinall on the Full Send Podcast, calling him "awesome" and saying that he doesn't believe Aspinall "needs" to fight him.

While that may be true, there is little doubt that Jones vs. Aspinall is the biggest heavyweight fight UFC can deliver right now, which is likely why White is waiting as long as he can before pivoting to something else.