Tom Aspinall will be the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion by the end of this year, at least according to the oddsmakers.
The Englishman, who won the interim heavyweight title in November 2023, has been campaigning for a winner-takes-all bout with formal champion Jon Jones ever since — even taking on a rare defence of an interim title this past summer against Curtis Blaydes while he awaited the conclusion of the Jones-Stipe Miocic rivalry.
But while Jones has expressed hesitation at defending his crown against Aspinall following his win over Miocic inside Madison Square Garden this past November, UFC boss Dana White has expressed confidence that the fight — billed as the biggest heavyweight fight in the UFC history — will go ahead in 2025.
“I’ll say 100 percent (the fight happens),” White said last year. “I think it’s probably the biggest fight in heavyweight history, and it’s a massive fight in the history of the company, too. It’s a big fight.
“From Day 1, I’ve been confident that Jon Jones would do that fight. Even before the fight (with Miocic), I said Jon will do this fight. Jon Jones isn’t afraid to fight anybody, and that’s a fact.”
And if it does become a reality, the oddsmakers are placing their faith in Aspinall to emerge with the undisputed championship and owner of Jones’ first legitimate defeat of his career, at least according to one prominent bookmaker which has offered the below prices on a list of heavyweight fighters ruling the division by the end of this year.
Tom Aspinall: -200
Jon Jones: +175
Ciryl Gane: +1000
Alex Pereira: +1000
Sergei Pavlovich: +1400
Alexander Volkov: +1600
Curtis Blaydes: +2000
Jailton Almeida: +2500
Serghei Spivac: +5000
Jairzinho Rozenstruik: +6600
Derrick Lewis: +6600
Marcin Tybura: +6600
Tai Tuivasa: +8000