Depending on how the cards fall in New York in November, Tom Aspinall may get his shot at undisputed UFC gold sooner than expected.

It was confirmed to the media on Tuesday in Las Vegas, including The Mac Life, that the organisation’s reigning interim heavyweight champion will attend November’s UFC 309 in Madison Square Garden on November 16 and will step into the cage should either Jon Jones or Stipe Miocic be unable to compete.

Aspinall, who defended his interim crown against Curtis Blaydes in Manchester several weeks ago, has been vocally campaigning to replace Miocic in the bout with Jones — particularly after both fighters’ relative inactivity in recent years.

However Jones, Miocic and White have maintained course for the long-anticipated heavyweight title clash which has been delayed for a year while Jones recovers from a pectoral injury sustained in preparation last year. In his stead, Aspinall stepped in on short notice to defeat Russian slugger Sergei Pavlovich to claim the interim heavyweight title.

“We’ll see how [UFC 309] plays out and we’ll go from there,” White told The Mac Life when asked about a recent Jones statement in which he heavily hinted that he would retire after the November date with Miocic.

“Yes,” White answered when probed as to whether Aspinall will serve as the main event backup fighter in November. “Tom Aspinall is next in line for anything that happens after this fight.”