Preparing for a return next weekend at UFC 304, interim heavyweight champion, Tom Aspinall has laid out a rather honest gameplan of how he would approach a long-mooted fight with Alex Pereira – and it involves a grapple-heavy attack.
Aspinall, the current interim heavyweight titleholder, returns next weekend in the co-main event of UFC 304 in Manchester, with the Atherton native attempting to avenge his sole Octagon loss as he rematches perennial contender, Curtis Blaydes over the course of five rounds.
Winning the interim crown on short-notice last November on the same card as Pereira’s light heavyweight title coronation, Aspinall stopped the streak of Russian knockout ace, Sergei Pavlovich with his own staggering knockout win.
And with the duo blooding through their respective divisions en route to championship spoils, pundits and fans alike have called for the pair to meet up in a heavyweight title showdown in the near future.
Tom Aspinall reveals how he’d approach Alex Pereira fight
Sharing his thoughts on how he matches up with the Sao Paulo berserker, Aspinall held no qualms about admitting his grapple-heavy approach to a potential fight in the future.
“He’s (Alex Pereira) a beast,” Tom Aspinall told Bloody Elbow. “I’m a big fan of him. I like hat he does and what he’s about. He’s there to fight, fights anybody, and is willing to do it on short-notice. We have pretty similar mindsets if I do say so myself.”
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“If we fought, I’d just sprint across the Octagon, rugby tackle him, and hold him on the floor,” Tom Aspinall continued.
Targeting his own end-of-year return – potentially at UFC 310 in December, light heavyweight champion, Pereira is widely-expected to take on surging Russian force, Magomed Ankalaev – who himself claims he would limit his own grappling style in order to stand and trade with the Brazilian knockout artist.
Who wins in a future heavyweight clash: Tom Aspinall or Alex Pereira?