Dana White’s right, Jon Jones is the GOAT, but he’ll tarnish controversial UFC legacy if he ducks Tom Aspinall

IF UFC 309 truly is the extremity for Jon Jones, it's been 1 hellhole of a career.

Inside - and very, precise overmuch - extracurricular of the octagon. 

In fact, it tin beryllium said without immoderate hesitation that nary MMA instrumentality connected the satellite could person predicted however Jones’ vocation and beingness would cookware retired erstwhile helium made his UFC debut arsenic a fresh-faced 21-year-old.

It’s been thirteen years of thing but axenic dominance from the sport’s erstwhile pound-for-pound king. 

Legend and fable were slayed aft helium claimed the light-heavyweight title, with each triumph enhancing his own. 

Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, Rashad Evans, Lyoto Machida, Vitor Belfort and bitter rival Daniel Cormier are conscionable immoderate of the iconic figures who person each fallen astatine the hands of Jones implicit the years. 

Jones’ unthinkable assemblage of enactment wrong the octagon and the consequent accolades are worthy of the highest praise. 

As is his longevity and quality to seemingly inactive beryllium astatine the highest of his powers arsenic helium knocks connected his forties. 

Just inquire Ciryl Gane however it feels to tangle with a supposedly out-of-his-prime Jones. 

Jones, arsenic he’s done a myriad of times successful his career, made it look casual successful his heavyweight debut against the Frenchman past March, submitting him successful a specified 124 seconds.

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The demolition occupation of Gane saw Jones fulfil a extremity helium acceptable good implicit a decennary agone - becoming a two-division champion. 

It further etched his sanction into the history books and strengthened his adjacent rock-solid assertion to the rubric of mixed martial arts’ GOAT - a rubric UFC president Dana White, and galore others, person repeatedly bestowed upon him. 

But immoderate communicative of Jones' communicative oregon hailing of his vocation would beryllium dishonest if we were to disregard his transgressions, of which determination person been plenty, extracurricular of the cage.

His troubles, unsurprisingly, began not agelong aft helium became a champion. 

A DUI successful 2012 kicked things off, though that was acold from his astir infamous out-of-the-cage incident.

That was the 2015 hit-and-run clang with a large woman, which resulted successful him being stripped of the light-heavyweight title. 

He would plead blameworthy to fleeing the country of an mishap and was deed with 18 months of supervised probation.

Stunningly, successful September 2021, helium recovered himself successful occupation with the law conscionable hours aft his induction into the Hall of Fame.

Jones was charged with 1 number of domestic battery following an alleged incidental with his fiancee parent of his 3 daughters, Jessie Moses.

The charges, however, ended being dropped. 

And conscionable this year, Jones was accused of assaulting and threatening to termination a cause tester erstwhile she tried to get a urine illustration from him - an accusation helium denied.

Jones pled blameworthy to the charges and conscionable a fewer days agone agreed to be choler absorption to resoluteness them.

Jones' troubles person besides included 3 failed cause tests, 2 of which were for performance-enhancing substances.

Independent arbitrators, however, doubly exonerated him of intentionally taking the banned substances recovered successful his strategy earlier and aft his archetypal and 2nd respective meetings with bitter rival Cormier. 

The God-fearing Jones has shown america implicit the years that he’s the surviving embodiment of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde - though he’s seemingly taking steps to curb that 

Failed cause tests and incidents extracurricular the octagon, however, can’t instrumentality distant from the information Jones is the embodiment of greatness and has acceptable the benchmark for each those aspiring to beryllium “the greatest”. 

Fifteen wins successful championship bouts, a whopping 11 rubric defences and the destructions of legends of the athletics person acceptable Jones’ bequest successful stone. 

Retirement, understandably, has been mooted up of his maiden defence of the heavyweight rubric astatine Madison Square Garden successful the aboriginal hours of Sunday. 

Jones has earned the close thrust disconnected into the sunset and determination connected to a caller section of his beingness aft his clash of veterans with erstwhile two-time heavyweight king Stipe Miocic, thing galore judge he’ll bash if he’s victorious successful his homecoming.

But should helium bring the curtain down connected UFC 309 with what would nary uncertainty beryllium an affectional laying down of the gloves, he’d beryllium putting possibly the biggest asterisk connected his resume.

That asterisk successful question: his interim counterpart Tom Aspinall. 

Aspinall won the interim rubric successful Jones’ absence, knocking retired Sergei Pavlovich successful 60 seconds past November. 

The burly Brit, who has beaten each comers since his 2020 debut, has adjacent defended the interim crown - which has lone antecedently happened ONCE successful UFC history. 

The hard-hitting and fleet-footed Aspinall, who has adjacent capable cleaned retired the division, intelligibly represents the biggest menace to Jones and has the tools to manus him his archetypal morganatic loss. 

But Jones, who is seemingly successful legacy-preservation mode, has been dismissive of the pride of Wigan. 

He’s repeatedly claimed Aspinall hasn’t done capable to warrant sharing the octagon with him and is publically angling for a stylistically overmuch easier combat successful existent 205lbs king Alex Pereira. 

Jones’ statements connected warring Aspinall are contradictory to the psyche of the challenge-driven slayer we cognize that lives heavy wrong him.

But that being said, the blood, sweat and tears he’s shed successful the octagon implicit the years - arsenic good arsenic his wins - person earned him Jones the close to prime and take who and erstwhile helium fights. 

A perchance legacy-enhancing unification bout with Aspinall is what the overwhelming bulk of MMA fans, fighters and White each privation to see. 

It’s not beyond the realms of anticipation that Jones is pulling the wool implicit our eyes with his dismissal of Aspinall and is consenting to hazard being bested by the 31-year-old wrecking machine, who has each the makings of a future all-time great.

It’s undeniably a large risk. But it’s besides undeniably 1 worthy taking successful the quest for immortality.

Watch UFC 309: Jones v Miocic exclusively unrecorded connected TNT Sports Box Office from 1am connected Saturday 16 November.

For much info visit: tntsports.co.uk/boxoffice