Interim heavyweight champion, Tom Aspinall has confirmed he will serve as the official backup fighter to next month’s title fight between rival, Jon Jones and the returning, Stipe Miocic — with the duo taking main event honors at UFC 310 next month at Madison Square Garden.
Aspinall, a current interim heavyweight titleholder, most recently co-headlined UFC 304 back in July, successfully defending the divisional championship with a blistering first round knockout win over perennial contender, Curtis Blaydes to avenge his sole Octagon loss.
And missing out on a title unification bout with Rochester native, Jones, who has since booked a rescheduled title defense against Ohio veteran, Miocic, Atherton native, Aspinall has confirmed he will serve as the official backup fighter to the heavyweight title tilt in New York City.
Tom Aspinall official backup for UFC 310 headliner
“Yes, it is official,” Tom Aspinall told Ariel Helwani for Uncrowned of his status as backup fighter at UFC 310. “I mean, Dana (White) announced it a while ago now, but I didn’t actually hear anything from the UFC. But now we’ve actually spoken, everything’s going good. We’ve come to an agreement about it, we know what’s happening going forward.”
We’ve got plans, we’ve got future fight plans, everything is right there,” Tom Aspinall explained. “It’s gonna be a good couple of years, let me tell you. Big plans, big, big, massive plans. My gut’s telling me [I won’t be needed], to be honest. Do I think it’s going to happen? Is it likely? In my opinion, probably not. But will I be ready? Absolutely.”
Linked with a massive heavyweight title fight against current light heavyweight titleholder, Alex Pereira, Aspinall has also been linked with a potential future title clash with former interim gold holder, Ciryl Gane — and former foe, Alexander Volkov, who share the Octagon next month in ‘The Big Apple.