Tom Aspinall is not one to wait around. The interim UFC heavyweight champion is eager to return to the octagon and keep his momentum at the top.
He will be able to do just that at UFC 304 on July 27 in Manchester, where he will defend his title in a highly anticipated rematch against American Curtis Blaydes.
The co-feature fight will be Aspinall’s first return to the octagon since he clinched the interim belt with a resounding knockout victory against Sergei Pavlovich in November of last year.
Aspinall’s recent hiatus might surprise some fans, but the heavyweight division operates on its own schedule.
Speaking ahead of filming on TNT Sports show Tom Aspinall’s Fight Lab, he explained to Mail Sport: “Six, seven months. When you’re at the top of the division, especially at heavyweight, things go a lot slower.
UFC star Tom Aspinall (pictured) will face Curtis Blaydes in the co-main event of UFC 304 in July.
It will be Aspinall’s first return to the octagon since beating Sergei Pavlovich in November.
‘When you’re on the rise, you fight much more regularly. Three, four times a year, but it gets a little more political at the top. So it was to be expected.’
The 31-year-old has been campaigning to unify the heavyweight title since beating Pavlovich, but that goal has been postponed by current champion Jon Jones.
The 36-year-old suffered a torn pectoral while training to fight Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 and has since stated that he will honor that fight before any fight with Aspinall.
But Aspinall, who previously claimed one of his rivals is “putting up shit” in the heavyweight division, insists his patience has not hampered his development.
‘I knew they were thinking about returning to the UK. And then I started hearing about Manchester. It’s no drama for me, I’ve improved a lot in the time between fights.
The upcoming fight in Manchester has special meaning for Aspinall, who grew up in Salford and started martial arts at Leigh Self Defense Studio.
“I hope it’s pretty wild,” he says, with obvious confidence. ‘I have fought at home, I have fought outside. I’ve been the underdog, I’ve been the favorite. I have fought against champions. I have done a lot in my short career.
Aspinall has been patiently waiting for his heavyweight title shot against Jon Jones.
Due to Jones’ firing, Aspinall admits he feels like he’s fighting for the ‘royal title’ against Blaydes
‘I no longer worry about feeling overwhelmed by anything or anyone. “I know I can do it and all I can do is go out and build the best version of myself.”
However, a unique challenge has emerged for both fighters and fans. The main card will begin at 3am BST, with Aspinall likely to walk into the octagon two hours later.
“In my personal opinion, it’s worse for the fans than it is for the fighters, the UK fans,” Aspinall admits.
‘It’s much worse for people who want to come and see the event live. And, as a wrestler, we haven’t figured out yet, as a team, what we’re going to do in terms of training, in terms of sleep patterns and all that.
Fellow British star Leon Edwards will also be in action against Belal Muhammad that night.
“You obviously want to be at 100 percent when you go in there, so some things are going to have to be tweaked and adjusted a little bit.” But what does that look like at this point? I don’t know, we’re still figuring it out.
‘I’ll chat to some people. Michael Bisping and I are friends, so I would probably ask him.
‘My coach mentioned something to me recently about going to train with Leon Edwards a bit, so I might ask Leon too. We’ll figure it out.’
The true meaning of this fight goes beyond the interim title. Aspinall sees this as “a true title defense” and a stepping stone towards his ultimate goal.
“This is a true title defense,” he declares. ‘For me, it’s another fight, a tough fight. I don’t shy away from difficult fights.
The British star insisted that, whatever happens, his next fight must be for the undisputed title.
“I have said openly many times that I think Curtis Blaydes is one of the most difficult fights in the division for me, if not the most difficult stylistically.
“I don’t really care who it is, but my next fight has to be for the undisputed title. I won’t defend the interim forever.
‘I think this is for the actual title. A lot of people look at Jon Jones as if he’s kind of sitting on the title. So I’m treating it like a real title defense.
‘But I repeat, the next fight has to be for the undisputed title. “There shouldn’t be two champions in any weight division.”
Watch Tom Aspinall’s Fight Lab on TNT Sports and Discovery+ from 9.45pm on Sunday. For more information visit tntsports.com