Former two-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier believes Tom Aspinall currently holds the global heavyweight crown over both Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou.
The debate surrounding who sits top spot as the world's best heavyweight has picked up again following a standout performance from Ngannou this past weekend in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Headlining a PFL pay-per-view, "The Predator" debuted in the SmartCage by battering Renan Ferreira on the ground and rendering the Brazilian unconscious in the very first round. The result came in Ngannou's first MMA bout since January 2022.
With the Cameroonian back in the discussion, he appears to be battling the UFC's heavyweight champ, Jones, and his interim counterpart, Aspinall, for the global throne.
And although much of the discussion post-fight for Ngannou has centered around a long-desired clash with Jones, Cormier said during a recent episode of his Good Guy / Bad Guy show alongside Chael Sonnen on ESPN MMA's YouTube channel that they would be competing for silver.
After dismissing Ngannou's claim to superiority over Jones and Aspinall, "DC" said he'd back the Englishman to beat both "The Predator" and "Bones," leaving him as the best heavyweight in the world.
I don't believe he's the best heavyweight, not Francis," Cormier said. "I think the best heavyweight is Tom Aspinall, still. I still believe the best heavyweight in the world right now is Tom Aspinall. I think Jon is, but he's older now. I think Aspinall's still young, he's fresh. There is something to not having everything yet. When you have everything, it's hard, man. This guy Tom still doesn't have everything. Sure, he's headlined a couple of pay-per-view. But he's not making seven figures every time he walks into the Octagon. He hasn't been making a million dollars for 10 years like Jon Jones.
I believe that Jones right now has everything. ... There was a time he could go through anything to stay champion. Can he still do that? ... Can he dig as deep as he did against Alexander Gustafsson?" Cormier continued. "Aspinall sure has a lot of questions, but when you look at these dudes all on paper, I would favor Tom to beat Francis, I would favor Tom to beat Stipe (Miocic), and I would actually favor Tom to beat Jon Jones right now.
It remains to be seen what lies ahead in MMA for Ngannou, but given his position away from the UFC and the uncertainty surrounding suitable opposition, he may struggle to change the minds of those sharing Cormier's sentiment.
Aspinall himself has cited Ngannou's opponent options away from the Octagon as the reason why he doesn't consider the Cameroonian a candidate for best-heavyweight status.
The Manchester native is confident that he holds that distinction, but he unfortunately won't have the chance to prove it next time out. Much to his bemusement and the frustration of many fans, Jones won't be unifying the title next month.
Instead, the former light heavyweight kingpin is set to put his gold on the line at UFC 309 against Miocic, who hasn't competed since a knockout loss to Ngannou back in March 2021.