Michael Bisping isn’t mincing words when it comes to the state of the UFC heavyweight division. The former middleweight champion and current UFC Hall of Famer has called on Jon Jones to make a decision: defend the title or let it go.
With months of speculation surrounding a possible unification bout between Jones (28-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC) and interim champion Tom Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC), patience is wearing thin across the MMA landscape. Frustration spiked even further after the UFC unveiled its upcoming pay-per-view schedule—noticeably absent was any mention of a heavyweight title fight.
Aspinall, who captured interim gold and has been campaigning hard for a showdown with Jones, has made his dissatisfaction public on multiple occasions. Meanwhile, Jones has shown little urgency. Since defending his belt against Stipe Miocic at UFC 304 last July, the longtime pound-for-pound king has floated the idea of retirement and has kept fans guessing with social media posts that highlight vacations and downtime rather than training or fight news.
For Bisping and many others, the message is clear: the time for stalling is over. The division needs movement—whether Jones is part of it or not.
"That's great for him. That's all well and good, but if you're the heavyweight champion of the world, then you have an obligation to the sport, the fans, to the other fighters in the divsion," Bisping said this week during an interview with Mike Bohn of MMA Junkie. "Live your life, and if you are somewhat retired, just be honest and come out and say it.
"Obviously, Dana (White) has been very adamant that the fight is going ahead. So I think maybe it's just Jon messing with Tom psychologically because he's a master of his craft, and he knows what he's doing. If he's not, and he has no intention of fighting, and he's just stringing it out for a while because he wants to hang on to the belt, then that's appalling to be quite frank.
"I feel for Tom here because Tom is in the prime of his life," Bisping continued. "He's an absolutely incredible fighter. He's just dispatching of everybody with ease. He's the best finisher in all the sport right now, and he's in the prime. He should be fighting every few months. Every six months at least. Every four or five months, he should be back in there building his legacy and making money and just doing what he was put on this earth to do – what he's trained an entire life for. Yet, he's just sitting around on the sidelines waiting and waiting and waiting.
"So, I'm sure it's extremely frustrating for Tom, the fans – because I've said this for a long time: I think Tom smokes him. I do. And I think Jon is probably very conscious of that threat as well. I'm not saying he doesn't think he can win, but he understands that this will be a tough fight, but they're all tough fights. They're all supposed to be tough fights."
“You Got Yours, Now Give Back”: Bisping Calls Out Jon Jones
If Jon Jones plans to continue his career, Michael Bisping thinks he should take a page from his own early history. When Jones was still a rising force at light heavyweight, the UFC wasted no time propelling him toward greatness. After submitting Ryan Bader at UFC 126, Jones was immediately offered a title shot—just six weeks later—against then-champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. Jones accepted without hesitation, and at UFC 128, he made history by becoming the youngest champion the promotion had ever seen. He followed that up with his first title defense only a few months later.
According to Bisping, that rapid rise and trust from the UFC played a key role in launching Jones into superstardom. Now, Bisping argues, it’s time for Jones—and the UFC—to return the favor. Interim champ Tom Aspinall has done everything asked of him, and Bisping believes he’s earned the same kind of fast-tracked opportunity Jones once enjoyed.
"For Jon to not want to give this guy an opportunity where other people gave him an opportunity – he was the youngest champion in this sport, and he's always talking about there's always going to be younger guys coming along – well, what about when you were fighting for the belt and you were the youngest person to ever do it?" Bisping said. "You got that opportunity. When you become the champion, there is an obligation to do that. So, defend or vacate. It's that simple.
"All these cryptic tweets and going out to Thailand and living his best life and sh*t, great. If that's what you want to do, go off and enjoy your life, but do the decent thing."
