Fresh from his victory just 1:13 into the first round on Saturday night at the O2 Arena at UFC London, Tom Aspinall joined Ariel Helwani for an interview to recap last weekend’s fight with Marcin Tybura and discuss his plans for the future.
Helwani was in Boston last summer when Aspinall fought Curtis Blaydes and was heartbroken that the hometown hero suffered such a horrific injury in the main event in London. It was a real dampener to an otherwise successful card for British MMA last year, as Molly McCann and Paddy Pimblett had earlier secured victories in front of a raucous crowd. Aspinall left UFC London feeling a lot better this time around.
Aspinall’s next opponent?
The manner of his victory over Tybura raised Tom Aspinall’s profile considerably, and both the MMA media and fans have been discussing his post-fight comments after he stated his intention to fight Jon Jones for the UFC Heavyweight title (eventually). First, Aspinall wants to fight the winner of Cyril Gane vs Sergey Spivac, who battle in Paris on September 2.
Although he was a fan of Aspinall’s presence on the mic last Saturday, Helwani told the heavyweight that he didn’t like the callouts, preferring the Englishman to have called out Sergei Pavlovich instead for war in Madison Square Garden at UFC 295 – the same card as Jon Jones vs Stipe Miocic.
”Well, I would agree with you on that, to be honest,” said a jovial Aspinall on the MMA Hour. ”I do see what you mean. All week when I was in London, there was a lot of talk about UFC Paris, so it was fresh on my mind. I’m hoping to do more things [broadcast work] for TNT Sports. So I was thinking, I want to do the pundit stuff again. I’m going to be there [in Paris]. Why not make it a bit of a scene and throw me in the cage after [the fight].”
Tom Aspinall on the MMA Hour
Whoever Aspinall ends up fighting next, more eyes will be on him than ever before, and one more win will likely put him right into contention for a UFC Heavyweight title shot next. It shows how one fight can change the tide for a fighter, particularly one with as much promise as Aspinall.
A year ago today was the day after Aspinall’s fight with Blaydes, and Aspinall said it was one of the lowest days of his life. Fast forward 365 days and the heavyweight contender spoke of the sheer relief that the fight went perfectly for him at UFC London.
”I was feeling the pressure on fight week, to be honest with you. Even more so this time. I felt a lot of pressure. I was reading back some conversations I had been having on WhatsApp with some close friends of mine. A couple of times, I said, ‘I can make money out of doing other stuff.’ I said that in multiple messages to multiple people.”
Tom Aspinall on the MMA Hour
These comments from Aspinall show how down he was following the injury, and he told Helwani that he switched off from MMA and hadn’t watched any fights for at least a couple of months following the fight with Curtis Blaydes. The fire had gone, and it was when his Dad organized a UFC watch party for the Cyril Gane vs Tai Tuivasa fight that the fire was lit once more.
The atmosphere in Paris could be felt through Aspinall’s television screen, and it reminded him of the support he receives in London. It changed his mindset, particularly as he felt after watching Gane vs Tuivasa that he could defeat either man. Whoever Aspinall’s next opponent is, it’s a certainty to be a significant fight in the heavyweight division.
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