Cormier: Jones not 'afraid of' Aspinall
UFC color commentator Daniel Cormier doesn't agree with the notion that Jon Jones is scared to fight Tom Aspinall.
Earlier this week, Jones, the heavyweight champion, made headlines when he said he "more than likely" wouldn't face Aspinall, the interim champ, after his UFC 309 title defense against Stipe Miocic next weekend at Madison Square Garden.
Many MMA fans came to the conclusion that Jones was ducking Aspinall, but Cormier doesn't see it that way.
"Jon Jones isn't afraid of Tom Aspinall," Cormier said in a video published Saturday on his YouTube channel. "I wish people would stop saying that. He is not afraid of that guy. He's not afraid of anyone."
In an interview with MMA reporter Kevin Iole, Jones said he would prefer a superfight against light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira should he choose not to retire after facing Miocic. He reasoned that a win over Pereira would do more for his legacy than a victory against Aspinall.
"I'm not here to gamble someone else making a name off of me," Jones said Thursday.
He added: "I've been gambling for way too long to just take random fights."
Cormier said he thinks Jones is simply being calculated as he approaches the end of his legendary career, adding that fighting Pereira "is much less risky than fighting" Aspinall.
"I think he's trying to be more strategic," Cormier said. "I think he's trying to make sure his legacy stands."
However, Cormier doesn't agree with Jones' puzzling stance that Aspinall wouldn't be a worthy challenger.
Aspinall, 31, has run through the division since his 2020 debut, compiling an 8-1 record in the UFC. The Englishman knocked out Sergei Pavlovich to claim the interim title last year and finished Curtis Blaydes in 60 seconds in his first defense in July.
"For Jon to say (Aspinall)'s a nobody, but is he really?" Cormier said. "He's a world champion. He's the world champ, honestly, that's who he is. He is the No. 2 heavyweight in the world. ... He's not a guy that's just working his way through the division. It's a guy that has smashed the division."
Cormier will be in the commentary booth as Jones returns from a 20-month layoff to take on Miocic in the main event of UFC 309. "DC" has a long history with Jones, sharing the cage with him twice between 2015 and 2017.