New rumours have come to light regarding Jon Jones' decision to retire and ultimately not defend his UFC undisputed heavyweight title against Tom Aspinall.
The destructive Aspinall had long sought a fight with Jones and would have fancied his chances in a bout given Jones was at the tail end of his MMA career.
However, Jones was not keen to step into the Octagon with the Englishman despite mass pleas from fans to see the fight take place.
Instead, Jones stepped away from fighting in June, bowing out as a two-weight UFC world champion.
Jones' retirement meant Aspinall was immediately upgraded from interim heavyweight holder to undisputed champion of the division.
The 32-year-old from Greater Manchester will defend his new title for the first time at UFC 321 on October 25, with Frenchman Ciryl Gane looking to take the heavyweight crown in Abu Dhabi.
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Jones' alleged demands for a fight with Aspinall were met
According to one top UFC source, a fight between Jones and Aspinall was somewhat closer to coming together than previously thought.
MMA journalist Ariel Helwani has revealed that Jones requested a specific high amount to fight Aspinall and that figure actually happened to be agreed upon.
"(Jones) gave the UFC a number. I believe it’s in the $30 million range for this fight," Helwani stated on the Impaulsive podcast with Logan Paul.
"(Jones) didn’t think they would come up with the number, and they did. I believe Saudi Arabia was involved. The big dogs were involved."
However, Helwani believes that Jones had no genuine intention of fighting Aspinall and explained what narrative he believes the now retired fighter was trying to create.
"I think it was a calculated decision on his (Jones') part (to ask for $30m). Why did you drag this out all the way until June (his retirement) when you knew you weren’t going to fight him?"
"(Jones) said yes, and then two days later said, ‘On second thought, I’m out.’ I think he was hoping they would not meet the number and he could go, ‘Hey guys, I tried,'" Helwani added.
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