Tom Aspinall: “I don’t want to be like Michael Chandler.”

UFC interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall explained why he’s ready to defend his title against Curtis Blades instead of waiting for a unification bout with Jon Jones.

“At one point I thought, ‘The next fight will be for the current title and I’m not backing down from that,'” the Brit said in an interview with Michael Bisping. “Now I’m just thinking about the fact that I want to create my own legacy. I’m not going to wait forever for something that’s not going to happen. Just as an example – look at what’s going on with Michael Chandler right now. This guy has been waiting forever for a fight with Conor McGregor.”

“I like Michael Chandler, I respect him, and I can’t say anything bad about the guy. But I don’t want to be like Michael Chandler, forever sitting on the sidelines waiting for a train that never comes. I want to create my own legacy and succeed on my own without waiting for anyone else. If I want to be one of the best fighters in history, I have to prove it.”

Earlier Tom Aspinall, who recently met Jon Jones in person, said that he was not impressed with the size of the current UFC heavyweight champion, and expressed confidence in defeating the American fighter if their fight ever takes place.

Last November, Jon Jones was scheduled to go out for his title defense against Stipe Miocic, but tore a pectoral muscle and pulled out of the fight, while Tom Aspinall won the interim championship belt at UFC 295 by knocking out Sergey Pavlovic in the first round.

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