Returning triumphantly from a catastrophic knee injury in July of last year, surging English heavyweight contender, Tom Aspinall has sights set on fighting for contender supremacy against current number one ranked challenger, Sergei Pavlovich. Aspinall, the current number four ranked heavyweight contender, managed to return from his above-mentioned sidelining back in July against Polish veteran, […]
Returning triumphantly from a catastrophic knee injury in July of last year, surging English heavyweight contender, Tom Aspinall has sights set on fighting for contender supremacy against current number one ranked challenger, Sergei Pavlovich.
Aspinall, the current number four ranked heavyweight contender, managed to return from his above-mentioned sidelining back in July against Polish veteran, Marcin Tybura, defeating the former M-1 Global champion with a first round knockout win.
As for Pavlovich, the streaking knockout artist most recently landed a first round TKO win of his own over common-foe, perennial contender, Curtis Blaydes back in April – earning the number one rank in the division and a post-fight Performance of the Night bonus to boot.
Tom Aspinall eyes title eliminator with Sergei Pavlovich after UFC Paris
And staking his claim for a stunning heavyweight title fight against incumbent division best, Jon Jones after the Endicott native’s title defense return against former gold holder, Stipe Miocic in November at UFC 295 – Aspinall admitted he wants to land the number one rank in the weight class in a decider against Pavlovich.
“Sergei Pavlovich – very easy question – very, very easy question,” Tom Aspinall told Eurosport when asked who he would like to fight next after UFC Paris. “I want what he’s got. I want to be the number one contender.”
Jon Jones has Stipe Miocic on his mind. In March, ‘Bones’ made his triumphant return to the Octagon, securing a slick first-round submission against Ciryl Gane to capture the UFC heavyweight title. Next’ Jon Jones will attempt to solidify himself as the greatest fighter in the history of mixed martial arts as he puts his […]
In March, ‘Bones’ made his triumphant return to the Octagon, securing a slick first-round submission against Ciryl Gane to capture the UFC heavyweight title. Next’ Jon Jones will attempt to solidify himself as the greatest fighter in the history of mixed martial arts as he puts his title on the line against the general consensus heavyweight GOAT, Stipe Miocic.
The pair will square off on November 11 when the promotion returns to the world’s most famous arena, Madison Square Garden, for UFC 295. With a few months to go before their highly anticipated showdown, Jon Jones is already getting mentally prepared for his next fight, revealing in a recent interview that Miocic is already weighing heavily on his mind.
“I feel like when you get to a place when you don’t feel anything is probably when it’s time to hang it up and try something different,” Jones said on the OverDogs podcast. “At this point, I still get really nervous, man. I have nightmares about my opponents. About every hour, Stipe Miocic will cross my mind. He will cross my mind. I could be having a drink, you name it, he crosses my mind. I could be at my kid’s volleyball game and I thinking about Stipe. There’s a lot of mental that goes into it that I don’t think people realize. But the goal is to just conquer that” (h/t MMA Fighting).
Jon Jones Expects Stipe Miocic to Come into UFC 295 as Dangerous as Ever
Miocic, 41, will likely walk away from the sport no matter the outcome at UFC 295, but Jon Jones knows that the former two-time heavyweight champ will come into their clash at MSG ready to put a stamp on his already illustrious career, regardless of his of age or post-fight plans.
“Stipe has balls. He has courage,” Jones said. “He’s not the youngest fighter, but that is a man. That is a man. I’m not the youngest either. In sports years, I’m over the hill, that’s for sure. Especially in combat sports. Stipe, he’s an honorable dude, and I know that he’s a man at the end of the day, and I know that he wants this fight. Everyone else thinks that his back’s against the wall and this is a David and Goliath situation for him, I disagree.
“I think Stipe is a very capable athlete and I think I owe it to Stipe to give him that chance to fight the best fighter ever. And I think Stipe owes it to me to give me a chance to fight the greatest heavyweight ever. I think we owe it to each other. I feel like we both would feel like we have unfinished business if we walked away not competing against each other.
“I understand where Stipe is at, just being looked past by a lot of people, and I respect him even more for training his ass off. I know that in his camp, he expects to win, so I respect him.”
Jon Jones Looks at the Future of the Heavyweight Division
Many fight fans automatically assume that Jon Jones will walk away from the sport following his showdown with Stipe Miocic at UFC 295. Honestly, nobody could blame ‘Bones’ for packing it in. After dominating the light heavyweight division for years, Jones made a successful transition to heavyweight. If he comes out on top against Stipe Miocic, it would be hard to argue against Jones being dubbed the greatest fighter in the history of the sport.
But Jon Jones is admittedly intrigued by some of the young talent coming up through the heavyweight division. Specifically, Tom Aspinall. The UK standout established himself as a bonafide contender following his first-round destruction of Marcin Tybura in July. But are fighters like Tom Aspinall and Sergei Pavlovich big enough names to be worth Jon Jones’ time and effort given everything he’s already accomplished?
The champ isn’t so certain.
“As far as these younger fighters, I look at guys like Aspinall and I look at guys like Sergei [Pavlovich], dude, they’re amazing,” Jones said. “Don’t get me wrong, these guys are amazing. They’re starching people in the first round. But as I get older I have to look at it as a business and not just speak out of pride, I have to speak out of my legacy and as a business.
“If the hardcore fans know who these guys are, that’s great, but at the end of the day, I need to fight people that the mainstream public is going to be excited about, because there’s always going to be this new challenge that’s younger than you and everyone is going to want to see if you can do it one more time. It is what it is.”
Tom Aspinall certainly got the attention of Jon Jones after his impressive win over Tybura, but whether or not they ever share the Octagon remains to be seen.
“Tom Aspinall, I think he has the potential to do something really special in the heavyweight division,” Jones said. “I think he’s going to be hard for the majority of guys to beat, I really do believe that.”
Former undisputed light heavyweight champion, Jan Blachowicz is weighing up a move to the UFC’s heavyweight ranks following his decision loss to fellow former titleholder, Alex Pereira at the end of last month – and suggests an immediate showdown with recent big-winner, Tom Aspinall. Blachowicz, who most recently co-headlined UFC 291 at the end of […]
Former undisputed light heavyweight champion, Jan Blachowicz is weighing up a move to the UFC’s heavyweight ranks following his decision loss to fellow former titleholder, Alex Pereira at the end of last month – and suggests an immediate showdown with recent big-winner, Tom Aspinall.
Blachowicz, who most recently co-headlined UFC 291 at the end of July in Salt Lake City, Utah, suffered a close, split decision loss to former middleweight champion, Pereira, in the Brazilian’s first venture at the light heavyweight limit during his brief Octagon tenure.
Jan Blachowicz eyes heavyweight landing against Tom Aspinall
And the Pole, who struck vacant gold against Dominick Reyes back in 2020 before successfully defending the title against incumbent middleweight titleholder, Israel Adesanya the following year, has revealed he has plans to notify the UFC of plans to make a stunning heavyweight division climb.
“Of course, why not?” Jan Blachowicz told Sportsnaut of a heavyweight division move. “You opened something in my mind, so yeah, we’re going to ask UFC about the opportunity of heavyweight. It’s something I have to think about.”
I need to watch them carefully, because when I watch the heavyweights I just watch for the fight,” Jan Blachowicz explained. “I don’t watch to analyse them, but (Tom) Aspinall did a great job in his last fight. That would be something very good for me for the first first stop in heavyweight.” (Transcribed by MMA News)
As for Aspinall, the Atherton native most recently headlined a UFC London event back in July against Polish veteran, Marcin Tybura, marking his return from a catastrophic knee injury the year before with a blistering opening round TKO win.
Tom Aspinall (13-3 MMA) has assured fans that he will be at UFC 295 to watch Jon Jones (27-1 MMA) Vs Stipe Miocic (20-4 MMA), whether he is scheduled to fight or sat cage side at the event. Aspinall is eager to return to the Octagon after he was forced to step away from the […]
Tom Aspinall (13-3 MMA) has assured fans that he will be at UFC 295 to watch Jon Jones (27-1 MMA) Vs Stipe Miocic (20-4 MMA), whether he is scheduled to fight or sat cage side at the event.
Aspinall is eager to return to the Octagon after he was forced to step away from the competition for a year due to a severe leg injury he sustained 15 seconds into his anticipated bout against heavyweight contender Curtis Blaydes (17-4 MMA) at UFC London in 2022.
Following his leg surgery, the 30-year-old finally returned to action against Polish brawler, Marcin Tybura (24-8 MMA) in the main event of UFC London.
Tom Aspinall did not disappoint the English faithful, knocking out Tybura in just 73 seconds, a performance that silenced his critiques and gave voice to a possible title run.
Jon Jones is set to make his first defence of his 265lbs title against former heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 in November.
Tom Aspinall plans to attend, however, in a perfect world he is hoping he will be able to make his pay-per-view debut by fighting on the undercard of the event and is even open to facing fellow heavyweight contender Sergey Pavlovich (16-3 MMA) at the event.
“I’m going to be at the event regardless,” Tom Aspinall said.
“Whether I’m fighting or watching, I definitely want to be there. To be that part of that fight week, what a build-up and what an event that will be. I really, really want to see that. Whether it’s up close or I’m gonna be fighting. Hopefully, I’m gonna be fighting on the same card because that timeline really works for me as well.”
Jones seemingly brushed off Aspinall’s callout stating that he has been beating young prospects that were supposed to be the next thing his whole career and he doesn’t see it any differently now.
‘Bones’ became a two-division champ in March earlier this year and has even hinted at the possibility of retirement after his upcoming fight against Miocic, but Aspinall feels that he can poke the bear enough to make him interested enough to stay around for one more dance.
“I’m all right to poke at someone’s ego. I am a polite guy, but I want to get what I want. I don’t want to be so polite where people overlook me. I want to beat the GOAT that’s what I want to do. I want to be the UFC heavyweight champion of the world and that’s what I’m going to do at any cost.”
Tom Aspinall continued, “If that means I have to do certain stuff to get people’s attention to put me in a place where other people are not, then I’m definitely gonna do that. I need to be selfish in this game because that’s what’s going to get me to where I want to be. Sometimes you have to hurt people’s feelings to get to where you wanna be and I’m all right doing that.”
At the end of the day, it is Jon Jones’ choice if he wants to keep fighting but the possibility of a Britain Vs. American showdown for the undisputed UFC heavyweight title might be too much of a tantalising possibility for the UFC to pass up.
Do you think we will ever see Tom Aspinall Vs Jon Jones?
UFC heavyweight Tom Aspinall intends to be cageside for the upcoming title clash between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic at UFC 295. Aspinall is fresh off a comeback win following suffering an ACL injury almost a year to the day against Curtis Blaydes. The Englishman made quick work off Marcin Tybura last weekend, dispatching of […]
UFC heavyweight Tom Aspinall intends to be cageside for the upcoming title clash between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic at UFC 295.
Aspinall is fresh off a comeback win following suffering an ACL injury almost a year to the day against Curtis Blaydes. The Englishman made quick work off Marcin Tybura last weekend, dispatching of him after landing a massive right at just over the minute mark.
The 30-year-old made his vision very clear during his post-fight speech and would state his claim for a future title shot.
“I’m gonna go to Paris, I’m gonna sit in the front row and see Cyril Gane vs. Serghei Spivak, I’m gonna beat the winner and then I’m gonna beat Jon Jones,” said Aspinall.
Aspinall will seemingly be taking it once step further, in a report by Chisanga Malata, will also be cageside for Jones’s upcoming UFC heavyweight title defence against Miocic.
Will Tom Aspinall face Jon Jones?
Of course, there would be several things that will have to go right, and if the past few years of the heavyweight division are something to go off – fans shouldn’t get too optimistic. However, the thought of an Aspinall Vs. Jones is mouth watering, and with Aspinall’s unique skillset it is a genuinely compelling fight.
Jones will have to defeat multiple time UFC champion Miocic, and even then, ‘Bones’ has made recent comments regarding retirement.
Aspinall is set to face the winner of Gane and Spivak, the latter of which he has already defeated compressively, but to the Moldavan’s credit he has made serious improvements since. Gane, who is the betting favrioute, would present a new challenge to Aspinall and would be clash between two the two best ‘new-age’ heavyweights.
How do you see a Jon Jones Vs, Tom Aspinall matchup playing out?
Despite initially calling for a title eliminator against the victor of a UFC Fight Night Paris headliner between Ciryl Gane and Sergei Spivak, recent UFC London winner, Tom Aspinall has not shied away from a bout with Russian knockout ace, Sergei Pavlovich, stressing how he “definitely” wants to clash with him. Headlining UFC London just […]
Despite initially calling for a title eliminator against the victor of a UFC Fight Night Paris headliner between Ciryl Gane and Sergei Spivak, recent UFC London winner, Tom Aspinall has not shied away from a bout with Russian knockout ace, Sergei Pavlovich, stressing how he “definitely” wants to clash with him.
Headlining UFC London just last weekend, Aspinall returned to the Octagon following a catastrophic knee injury the year prior, stopping Polish veteran, Marcin Tybura with a stunning first round TKO in the capital.
In the immediate aftermath of the pairing, the Atherton native welcomed the possibility of a title eliminator against former interim champion, Gane, or former opponent, Spivak – with the European contenders slated to headline at the Accor Arena in France on September 2.
Tom Aspinall welcomes title eliminator with Sergei Pavlovich
However, as far as a suggested pairing with streaking knockout ace, Pavlovich, Aspinall maintained he definitely wanted to fight the Russian.
“I wouldn’t turn him (Sergei Pavlovich) down, definitely not,” Tom Aspinall told the Daily Star. “I definitely want to fight him. I probably – I don’t know (why I didn’t call him out) I think he just wasn’t fresh in my mind. I think it’s because everyone was talking about UFC Paris all week and what a good event it would be.”
“I think I forgot about Pavlovich, to be honest,” Tom Aspinall explained. “But if he’s the number one contender, then I want to fight him. I’m not really fussed with the direction which UFC go – I’m ready for anyone.”
The current number one ranked heavyweight contender, has enjoyed a stunning six-fight winning run since a knockout loss to Alistair Overeem in his Octagon debut racking up wins over the likes of Curtis Blaydes, Tai Tuivasa, Derrick Lewis, and Shamil Abdurakhimov to name a few.
Would you like to see Tom Aspinall vs. Sergei Pavlovich next?