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The UFC Heavyweight division entered a new era when Jon Jones made his long-awaited debut at 265 pounds in November 2024, submitting Stipe Miocic to claim the title he had spent years preparing to win. The result created an immediate interesting landscape: Jones as the new champion, an interim champion in Tom Aspinall who had been running the division in Jones’s absence, and a deep field of elite heavyweights all vying for position in one of combat sports’ most prestigious weight classes.

UFC Heavyweight Champion: Jon Jones

Jon Jones became UFC Heavyweight Champion at UFC 309 in Madison Square Garden with a third-round rear naked choke of former champion Stipe Miocic. The performance was not Jones at his physical best — he was visibly winded at points and the fight was competitive before the finish — but it demonstrated the quality that defines his entire career: the ability to find a finish when the moment arrives, regardless of the circumstances.

Jones at heavyweight is a different proposition than Jones at light heavyweight. He no longer has the reach and athleticism advantages that made him so dominant at 205 pounds. But he adds genuine mass, punch power, and the wrestling and submission game that remain elite regardless of weight class. Whether he can defend the title against the current crop of elite heavyweights is the division’s defining question.

Interim Champion: Tom Aspinall

Tom Aspinall holds the UFC Interim Heavyweight Championship and has the best legitimate claim to being the true best heavyweight in the world right now. The British fighter’s combination of elite striking, legitimate submission grappling, and the speed to pressure opponents unusually quickly for a 265-pound man has produced a series of impressive finishes in the UFC.

Aspinall set the record for the fastest heavyweight title fight finish, submitting Sergei Pavlovich in 69 seconds to win the interim title. His subsequent defense over Curtis Blaydes was equally dominant. His patience in waiting for a unification fight with Jones has been tested across multiple event cancellations, but the fight remains the most anticipated in the heavyweight division.

Top Contenders

#1: Ciryl Gane

Ciryl Gane is the most technically refined striker in the heavyweight division and the clearest example of a heavyweight who could compete against Jones’s championship-level wrestling. His footwork and movement are exceptional for a man his size, and his ability to fire from multiple angles while maintaining distance gives him a stylistic toolkit that differentiates him from every other heavyweight.

#2: Sergei Pavlovich

Sergei Pavlovich was the division’s most feared finisher before his loss to Aspinall. The Russian heavyweight has knockout power in both hands and a first-round finishing rate that made him the division’s most dangerous prospect entering his interim title fight. Despite the loss, his power and willingness to stand and trade make him a dangerous matchup for any heavyweight.

#3: Curtis Blaydes

Curtis Blaydes is the heavyweight division’s most accomplished wrestler and one of the most durable competitors at 265 pounds. He has taken Francis Ngannou to decision twice, defeated Alexander Volkov and Jairzinho Rozenstruik, and remains a perennial top-five contender. His wrestling and ground-and-pound create problems that strikers struggle to solve.

#4: Stipe Miocic

Stipe Miocic remains the most accomplished heavyweight champion in UFC history by most measures: three title reigns, six title defenses including back-to-back wins over Daniel Cormier (twice), and a career that defined the division for seven years. The Jones loss may be his last fight, but his legacy is permanent. Should he return, he would still be among the division’s top five on credentials alone.

The Aspinall-Jones Unification

The fight the entire heavyweight division is waiting for is the unification between Jones and Aspinall. Jones has been slow to commit to the fight and Aspinall has grown increasingly vocal about the situation. The fight represents the clearest style clash in heavyweight history in years — Jones’s wrestling and submission game against Aspinall’s speed, striking, and grappling.

Aspinall, at 31 years old and at his physical peak, represents the most genuine competitive threat Jones has faced since Alexander Gustafsson in 2013. Whether that fight happens in 2025 or beyond is the central narrative of the heavyweight division for the foreseeable future.