Jul 16, 2025; Hollywood, CA, USA; Diana Taurasi (left) talks with Jon Jones on the ESPYs red carpet at the Dolby Theatre. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

mma

Jon Jones Reacts To Tom Aspinall’s UFC 321 Eye Poke Stoppage With Savage Profile Picture Update!

Jul 16, 2025; Hollywood, CA, USA; Diana Taurasi (left) talks with Jon Jones on the ESPYs red carpet at the Dolby Theatre. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Retired fighters rarely miss opportunities to throw shade at their former rivals from the sidelines. Social media has given legends the perfect platform to troll without actually having to fight anymore. Jon Jones mastered this art form throughout his controversial career that spanned nearly two decades. The former heavyweight champion held the belt hostage from mid-2023 until June 2025 with his demands. He insisted on fighting Stipe Miocic instead of unifying against Tom Aspinall despite massive fan pressure. Jones eventually vacated the title and retired rather than face the British knockout artist everyone wanted.

Tom Aspinall got promoted to undisputed champion immediately after Jones walked away from the sport. The heavyweight division finally moved forward into a new era without Jones creating drama constantly. Aspinall defended his title against Ciryl Gane at UFC 321 in what should have been historic. But an accidental eye poke at 4:35 of round one ruined everything completely. The fight ended in a disappointing no contest that left fans furious and frustrated. Jones couldn’t resist trolling Aspinall after the disastrous ending everyone witnessed Saturday night.

Jon Jones Updates His Avatar With Perfect Trolling

Jon Jones wasted absolutely no time throwing shade at Tom Aspinall after UFC 321 concluded. Shortly after the main event disaster, Jones made a subtle but savage change to his social media avatars. He added an eyepatch to his trademark belt-wearing duck profile picture that’s been trolling fans for months. Jones originally switched to the duck avatar earlier this year amid massive accusations that he was “ducking” the Aspinall fight. The duck wearing his championship belt became a running joke throughout the MMA community online.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by MMA Pros Pick (@mma.pros.pick)

Adding the eyepatch took the trolling to another level entirely after the eye poke stoppage. Jones basically suggested Aspinall was a pirate now or maybe just looking for excuses. The timing was perfect and the message was crystal clear without Jones saying anything directly. He let the image speak for itself while fans debated the meaning across social media.

Few people in the world were probably more satisfied watching UFC 321’s anticlimactic main event than Jones. His contentious rivalry with Aspinall became bitter during the final months before his retirement. Aspinall constantly called him out while Jones refused to acknowledge him as a legitimate threat. The British fighter claimed Jones was scared and avoiding him at all costs possible. Jones insisted he earned the right to choose his final opponent and wanted the Miocic legacy fight.

Aspinall now faces questions about his heart and toughness heading into a rematch with Gane probably early next year. Meanwhile Jon Jones sits back trolling from the sidelines with perfectly timed social media updates.

(Image Credit: Kirby Lee – Imagn Images)

Ciryl Gane

Jon Jones

Tom Aspinall

UFC 321

Zaid Quraishi

mma

I am a dedicated MMA and Boxing content writer at The Playoffs. I was instantly hooked on MMA after watching the fight between Lyoto Machida vs. Gegard Mousasi back in 2014, and since then, i have been an avid writer with a deep love for the sport and its techniques, providing readers with a thorough understanding of the sport. My favorite aspect of working at The Playoffs is the creative freedom it provides. The diverse range of topics, from listicles and SEO to news articles, keeps me engaged and motivates me to continuously improve my skills! I aim to capture the excitement of the combat sports world in my writing, acting as the middleman between fighters and their die-hard fans. It is kind of like a referee, but with words!