As Tom Aspinall (along with most MMA fans around the world) waits for his UFC heavyweight championship unification match, it appears Jon Jones’s next venture — in a surprising move — is outside the Octagon.
Jones will be heading to Russia alongside another UFC great, Nate Diaz, to serve as coaches for season two of ALF Reality — a Russian program similar in nature to The Ultimate Fighter.
Jones announced the news on his Instagram page.
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ALF Reality‘s first season also saw two UFC stars serve as coaches, as that season featured former bantamweight title rivals Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan.
That said, several MMA fans and pundits gave the news flack, as this project provides no update for a fight with Aspinall — a fight Jones has previously stated he feels he has little obligation to fulfill.
Jon Jones To Serve As Coach On Reality Show Opposing Nate Diaz
Jones and Aspinall’s negotiations have gone on for months now, with Aspinall at one point showing up in the crowd at UFC London in late March, holding up a rubber duck to the camera.
Jones has fought just twice since the start of 2023 — defeating Ciryl Gane at UFC 285 for the then-vacant heavyweight title and retaining it in a fourth-round finish of Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 in November. Jones’ win over Gane was his first fight in the Octagon since defeating Dominick Reyes to retain the UFC light heavyweight title at UFC 247 in February 2020 for that matter.
Aspinall became interim UFC heavyweight champion with a 69-second finish of Sergei Pavlovich in the co-main event of UFC 295 in November 2023. That was the originally planned date for Jones vs. Miocic before Jones suffered a torn pec.
Aspinall retained the interim title with a finish of Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304 last July. If he’s required to defend the interim belt again, he would become just the second man in UFC history (following Renan Barao’s two interim bantamweight title defenses during Dominick Cruz’s injury while champion) to do so.
