Aspinall open to defending interim title against Blaydes-Almeida winner

UFC interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall has acknowledged a matchup that interests him and doesn't involve Jon Jones or Stipe Miocic.

Earlier this week, Aspinall tweeted that he's willing to defend his belt against the winner of the UFC 299 bout between Curtis Blaydes and Jailton Almeida, which takes place on March 9 in Miami.

This latest remark is a U-turn for Aspinall, who previously was adamant about fighting either Jones or Miocic next. In November, Aspinall said the UFC should strip Jones of the heavyweight championship and book an undisputed title fight between himself and Miocic while Jones recovers from a torn pectoral muscle.

However, UFC CEO Dana White hasn't budged from plans to reschedule Jones-Miocic in 2024, leaving Aspinall as the odd man out despite being the interim champ.

Jones-Miocic was scheduled to headline UFC 295 at Madison Square Garden in November, but the heavyweight king pulled out of the fight due to the injury. The promotion booked an interim title bout between Aspinall and Sergei Pavlovich in its place, and Aspinall won by first-round knockout.

Aspinall has history with Blaydes. Aspinall suffered a knee injury in the opening seconds of their July 2022 bout at UFC London, leading to his only Octagon defeat.

Almeida, meanwhile, is one of the top up-and-comers in the division. Most recently, he dominated Derrick Lewis in the UFC Sao Paulo main event two months ago.