McGregor ‘Exposes’ Aspinall’s Sparring

November 20, 2024

4 months

Conor McGregor has reacted negatively to Tom Aspinall’s sparring with Glory Kickboxing Heavyweight Champion Rico Verhoeven.

McGregor is working his way back from a broken toe, which prevented his UFC 303 fight against Michael Chandler. It was a devastating setback since McGregor has not had a UFC fight since losing to Dustin Poirier in 2021 at UFC 264. That was his third loss out of his last four fights, as questions remain about whether McGregor will return to his best.

He suffered a broken leg in that defeat, something which could derail his UFC career forever. That has meant he has turned his attention to other fighters. He urged Jon Jones to watch the following clip, showing Aspinall being on the defensive against Rico. He hoped that would give Jones some pointers on how to beat him if they faced off.

McGregor Reacts

McGregor also took issue with Dana White calling a Jones-Aspinall fight the biggest in MMA history. Before his injury, McGregor was involved in one of the biggest fights in the sport’s history. He took on Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 in 2018. The build-up was marred by controversy after McGregor attacked Khabib’s team bus with a chair. There were also suggestions that McGregor disrespected Khabib’s Islamic religion. He also turned up to the presser with some whiskey.

The fight ultimately took place as Khabib won by a fourth-round submission. After the fight, Khabib could be seen spitting on McGregor. He then jumped over the Octagon as a brawl broke out. The fight set a PPV record with 2.4 million buys and became one of the most talked-about fights in the history of MMA. A rematch never happened, as Khabib would later retire after beating Justin Gaethje. Following his father’s passing, Khabib made a promise to his mother that he would never fight again.

Jones Vs. Aspinall

Jones is coming off the first defense of his UFC Heavyweight Title after he stopped Stipe Miocic at UFC 309. Before the fight, there was speculation that Jones could retire, meaning fans would never see the Aspinall fight. However, in his post-fight comments, Jones said he would be willing to fight anybody if he was given a significant amount of money. That has now created the narrative for the biggest fight in UFC history, as the pressure is on Dana White and the UFC to make that bout. White made it clear that this would be the biggest fight in the sport.

“It would be the biggest heavyweight fight in UFC history, by a long shot. It’s going to be the biggest heavyweight fight ever. And it’ll probably be the biggest fight we’ve ever done. He’s got the highest fight IQ – he’s like Elon Musk in the octagon. This guy is brilliant in there, and the things he pulls off (are amazing). … I don’t know what he’ll do with Aspinall,” White said

McGregor has now reacted to the news. The Irishman may be a two-weight world champion, but there is only so long McGregor can live off his past achievements. Given that he still has two fights left on his UFC deal, McGregor’s following comments may be an attempt to stay relevant. McGregor simply wrote ‘“Now, now,” before deleting his post on X.