Morning Report: Alexander Gustafsson believes Tom Aspinall ‘too much for Jon Jones,’ could be ‘best heavyweight ever’

Everybody wants to see Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall.

Many have tried but all have fallen to defeat the arguably greatest fighter of all time, Jones — except for Matt Hamill. In all seriousness, “Bones” has had a close call or two with decisions in his illustrious 29-fight (27-1, 1 NC) career. The first came against Sweden’s Alexander Gustafsson in a Hall of Fame-worthy clash at UFC 165 in 2013.

Gustafsson, 37, ultimately lost the bout via unanimous decision but got his long-awaited rematch in December 2018. Unfortunately for him, that also didn’t go his way when he lost by third-round TKO and inevitably wound up at heavyweight two fights later. In the years since then, Jones followed suit, won the vacant title, and now has an interim champion to worry about should he get past an expected Stipe Miocic rebooking. The community has been clamoring for said interim titleholder Tom Aspinall to challenge Jones, as someone in that position historically would, and should they collide, Gustafsson believes the Brit gets it done.

‘‘Aspinall is on fire right now and he is a very, very good heavyweight,” Gustafsson told Crypto Betting Sites. “I don’t see anyone beating Aspinall right now. I understand why Tom wants to fight Jon, it’s because Jon is the GOAT, he is the biggest UFC star right now. If Tom was to beat Jon it would be bigger than winning any UFC belt. The biggest achievement in the UFC right now is to beat Jon Jones. I understand why Aspinall is chasing the fight. I think he is ready for Jon. He’s on fire right now. If he fights Jon Jones it should be now.

“I think Tom will be too much for Jon. He has all the weapons to beat Jon. Jon hasn’t been that active, but he’s still the GOAT. You can never count this guy out, he’s so freaking good at what he does. He’s handled every opponent and everybody knows how good he is, but Aspinall right now, I see him as very dangerous for Jon right now. He’s dangerous on his feet, he’s fast, he has great footwork and he’s a smart fighter. He has the tools to do good against Jon and even beat him. If they will fight, now is the time for Aspinall. He could go down as one of the best heavyweights ever.’’

Before the 31-year-old Aspinall can even pretend to once again fantasize about a Jones matchup, he has to get through Curtis Blaydes in an interim title defense rematch in UFC 304’s co-main event next month. Meanwhile, Jones and Miocic have been hinted at for November, the same month they were originally scheduled last year before Jones tore his pectoral muscle.

While Gustafsson believes Aspinall has what it takes to stop Jones’ historically lengthy reign of terror, the same can’t be said for former two-time heavyweight champion Miocic. Therefore, theoretically setting up that hopeful Jones vs. interim champ collision.

‘‘It’s hard to see Stipe beating Jones,” Gustafsson said. “I like Stipe a lot, he’s a great heavyweight, but it’s hard to see him beating Jones. Stipe has done more than most heavyweights in the division, but I have a hard time seeing Stipe beat Jones.’’

As for Gustafsson, “The Mauler” hasn’t fought since July 2022 when he lost his fourth consecutive bout when he suffered a first-round knockout against Nikita Krylov. Despite the layoff, he’s hoping to close his career out on a good note if given the chance.

‘‘I’m not closing any doors, if I get an offer I get an offer and we’d take it from there,” Gustafsson said. “The life I’m living right now, it wouldn’t take much for me to adapt and get back into fight mode. I’m still in the game, I still train with the pro team. What I really want right now is to feel that hunger again of competing and walking into a training camp and going to hell and back.

“I need to feel that fire in my body, the feeling of wanting to go to hell and back to get myself ready physically and mentally. This is nothing new to me, I’ve been doing it for 15 years and I’ve been so close to getting that belt. I really want to feel the fire again. I will take any fight. I’ve been away for so long.’’

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Ashley Yoder (8-9) vs. Gloria de Paula (6-6); LFA 190, Aug. 16

Viacheslav Borshchev (7-4-1) vs. James Llontop (14-3); UFC Vegas 96, Aug. 24

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