Jon Jones continues to dismiss Tom Aspinall fight: ‘Sure, call me duck for the next year’

Jon Jones isn’t budging when it comes to Tom Aspinall.

The UFC heavyweight champion kept his Twitter fingers busy late Thursday evening as he wrote a series of comments dismissing Aspinall—the No. 1 heavyweight in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings and two spots ahead of Jones at No. 6 in the Pound-for-Pound Rankings—as a potential opponent and mocking his critics.

Jones wrote a motivational Thanksgiving message touting his keys to success and then responded to several replies regarding Aspinall.

“Sure, call me a duck for the next year,” Jones wrote in response to a comment saying he is avoiding Aspinall. “Tom will lose within the next two or three fights and my legacy will go on as the greatest MMA fighter ever. End of story.”

For the past year, Jones has been bombarded with comments from fans and media suggesting that he should defend his UFC heavyweight title against Aspinall, the interim champion. Aspinall won his share of the heavyweight crown in November 2023 when a bout between him and Sergei Pavlovich was booked for UFC 295 when an injury forced Jones out of a matchup with Stipe Miococ. The British star defeated Pavlovich in 69 seconds to claim an interim title.

Rather than pivot to Jones vs. Aspinall, Jones and the UFC favored the original Jones vs. Miocic booking, leaving Aspinall to successfully defend the interim title against Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304. Jones and Miocic eventually met on Nov. 16 at UFC 309, where Jones capped off a lopsided performance against Miocic with a spectacular spin kick to the body that resulted in a TKO.

Jones has stated on many occasions that fighting Miocic, one of the greatest heavyweights in MMA history, was important for his legacy. He has also stood firm in his belief that Aspinall, 8-1 in the UFC with wins over numerous top-10 opponents, hasn’t done enough to earn a fight against him. Jones is the greatest fighter ever to compete at 205 pounds, but is just 2-0 as a heavyweight.

Instead of Aspinall, Jones has lobbied for a bout with current light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira. The 37-year-old has also suggested that depending on how future negotiations with UFC go, he may not fight again at all.

“Why, I’m incredibly wealthy, I have achieved all my goals in the sport, Hall of Famer, broke many records,” Jones wrote. “Serious question why should I fight again?”

“I’d probably vacate the belt before officially retiring,” Jones added in a subsequent message. “Let’s see how my meeting with UFC goes.”

Jones also insisted that being called a “duck” does not bother him.

“Crazy how being called a ‘duck’ pays better than most of you internet tough guys will make in a lifetime,” Jones said. “Two fights in four years and still one of the biggest names in the sport? That’s not ducking, that’s winning. God’s blessings hit different, stay mad.”

See more of Jones’ comments below.