Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson expected the Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic fight to be more competitive. In fact, ‘Rampage’ had put more stock into the old dogs than new breed Brit heavyweight champ (IC) Tom Aspinall. But the main event at UFC 309 again proved Jackson is sometimes misinformed.
No — this time, he did not put a gimmicky slur to a title. But Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson did go as far as to say best-ever heavyweight Stipe Miocic would be a stern test than Tom Aspinall. Jon Jones blew past the test with a third-round spin-kick TKO at the UFC 309 headliner. Jackson is scratching his wits after that.
I feel like Jon Jones’ last performance, I don’t even think any heavyweight could beat Jon Jones, …no disrespect to Aspinall. I think Aspinall is a great fighter. I’m a fan of his, as well, but I figured Stipe would be a tougher challenge than Aspinall. I was thinking it on paper. I think Jon Jones is the Neo of MMA. He’s Neo.
Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson said on ‘The Ariel Helwani Show’
Yes — Jackson did allude to him as the high-flying, bullet-bending pop culture character “Neo” yet again. BJJ black belt and crisp boxer Tom Aspinall has exceptional battle acumen as well. But part of the snub from many comes from the fact that he has done too little. Per statleaders.ufc.com (UFC Record Book), the 31-year-old averages the shortest fight time. He is also indomitable on the ground.
However, that also means Aspinall has lesser battle experience against top competition. For another – even away from the scope of Stipe Miocic, Jackson knows firsthand how good Jones is. After all, he challenged Jones for the 205-pound title at UFC 135 in September 2011.
In the UFC 135 matchup, Rampage Jackson could not mount any offense. In the end, he tapped in the fourth round against ‘Bones.’ Hence, he vigorously stood by the MMA behemoth. However, there are some areas, where “Bones” overvalues his edge.
Is Tom Aspinall the future or not is another bridge for another day. But Jones may have ignited all manner of pound-for-pound discussions after his win over Stipe Miocic. The 37-year-old fighter returned to the octagon after quite a layoff and injury. However, he fluidly defeated former champion Miocic via third-round TKO.
After Tom Aspinall snub, Jon Jones meets his match in fact-check TKO (Source: X)With Aspinall in the equation and available, age was a big factor going into UFC 309 PPV. Coming out of the fight, Jon Jones kept his age at the forefront of the discussion. But now he’s deploying it to his advantage – or at least trying to. Who gets the boot? Alex Pereira – that’s who.
In 2011, I became the youngest champion in UFC history. Today, I’m proud to stand as the oldest champion on the roster.. Age is just a number when your mind and spirit stay sharp.
Jon Jones via X (@JonnyBones)
In 2011, I became the youngest champion in UFC history. Today, I’m proud to stand as the oldest champion on the roster.. Age is just a number when your mind and spirit stay sharp.
— Jonny Meat (@JonnyBones) November 27, 2024
The first sentence of Jones’ tweet is a matter of fact. He defeated Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 128 at the age of 23 to become the youngest UFC champion in history. However, the second sentence is not, and Jones became a victim of the infamous Community Notes on X. It’s used to fact-check claims made on the platform. Pereira at 37, is also a double champ and older than Jones.
GOAT landed on 19 July 1987, whereas Pereira was born 12 days older than “Bones” on 7 July of the same year. Whether an oversight or not, X (formerly Twitter) thus ends the eloquent Jones and his win streak. 50-45’d by a social media platform is not the way to go. But at least it’s better than facing greedy fighter Aspinall.
