Jon Jones only had words for light heavyweight contender Alex Pereira after the much-talked-about ending to UFC 321, but he did take a subtle dig at Tom Aspinall by changing his profile picture on social media.
Aspinall's first heavyweight title defence ended prematurely on Saturday night, after opponent Ciryl Gane accidentally poked the champion in both eyes.
In fact, despite Aspinall being given time to recover, the bout was eventually declared a no-contest after the Salford-born fighter informed the doctor that he could not see.
Speaking in his post-fight interview, a furious Apsinall labelled his first title defence "b******t" after it was stopped in the first round.
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"Guys, I just got f***ing poked knuckle deep in the eyeball," he said in the octagon. "What the f**k? Why are you booing? What am I supposed to do about it? I didn't do the f***ing poke. I can't see."
He continued: "This is bulls**t. The fight was just getting going. Complete bulls**t. I'm p***ed off. I can hardly open my eye. Look. Look. Look at this. Look at this. Fucking double poke. Both eyeballs. Yeah, it was double. It was double."
Aspinall was immediately taken to the hospital and did not take part in the post-fight news conference.
A short time later, former two-weight UFC champion Jon Jones reacted to the incident by changing his profile picture on social media to a duck with an eye patch, seemingly in reference to Aspinall's damaged eye.
Jon Jones responds to Alex Pereira proposal after win over Magomed Ankalaev
Ahead of UFC 321, Pereira said that he wants to make the step up to heavyweight and fight former champion Jon Jones on the White House card, which is scheduled to take place on June 14, 2026.
When asked about the possibility of taking on the winner of the heavyweight title fight on UFC's Last Fight show, Pereira replied: "No, I want a superfight. It would be at the White House against Jon Jones. That's a superfight."
Pereira has previously spoken of his desire to face Jones and recently honoured the former champion's late brother Arthur with a moment of silence in his post-match interview with Joe Rogan at UFC 320.
Jones reacted on social media, appreciating the words and gesture by writing, "Wow Alex" alongside a prayer emoji.
And on Saturday night, Jones confirmed his desire to face light-heavyweight champion Pereira. "Alex, I’d be down to bring the highest skill level to the White House," he said on X. "I appreciate the respect you showed, let’s dance."
Topics: Jon Jones, Tom Aspinall, UFC
Jack Kenmare