"Recognizes dangers" - Daniel Cormier speculates why Jon Jones might be "concerned" about fighting Tom Aspinall 

UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones is making headlines once again - not for a fight he competed in but for a fight he might be avoiding. This is quite the news as 'Bones' isn't someone known to turn down let alone avoid matchups. And yet some believe this may be the case with Tom Aspinall, the current interim champion of his division.

Jones went on record to say that he isn't interested in a unification bout with Aspinall, even though it's common practice for an undisputed titleholder to unify the belts. To make things more complex, Jones' boss himself, UFC president Dana White, has said that he strongly believes Jones should face Aspinall.

Speaking on the matter was former UFC heavyweight and light-heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier, who had a lengthy rivalry with 'Bones' in the past. On his YouTube channel, 'DC' speculated why Jones isn't particularly excited about an Aspinall fight:

"At the end of the day, guys, I will tell you: he [Jones] is not afraid. Tom Aspinall to Jon Jones is just another guy that he would fight, and that he believes he can beat. That's just the truth. But what he does want is to get paid and I think he recognizes the dangers in that fight."

He continued:

"I mean, when this [betting] line opens, Jon Jones was an underdog. Jon Jones was the underdog. I don't even know if there's ever been a time in his career where someone has been favored to beat Jon Jones! And I think that concerns him."

Check out Daniel Cormier's comments here (2:24):

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Daniel Cormier further explains why Tom Aspinall thinks Jon Jones is "hesitant" to fight him

Speaking further on the drama, Daniel Cormier said, despite coming in as an underdog, Jones still has a lot of tools to dispatch Tom Aspinall if they ever fought inside the octagon. 'Bones' just has a lot of weapons that heavyweights don't see a lot.

Cormier recalled a time, presumably around UFC 309, when Aspinall walked out of a meeting with Dana White and Hunter Campbell smiling. But then Jones went to the post-fight press conference not wanting to fight him.

'DC' said (4:23):

"Tom [Aspinall] believes that the unknown may be too much for Jon Jones. [Jon] Jones is a big-time studier of footage. But all the footage that Tom has is him beating people up. So, he thinks that that advantage - that thing that Jon relies on so much - is gone. It's gone. He thinks that is why Jones is hesitant to fight him."

While Cormier's words hold a lot of water, these are mere speculations. Only Jones knows why he's willing to give up the belt and fight someone else.