At UFC 295, Tom Aspinall made an emotional entrance after defeating Sergei Pavlovich in a stunning knockout to win the interim heavyweight title.
After taking down Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 295 to win the interim heavyweight title, Tom Aspinall had to fight back the tears.
At Madison Square Garden on Saturday night, November 11, the 30-year-old, who entered the fight with just two and a half weeks’ notice, stopped Russian Pavlovich just over a minute into the opening round.
Aspinall became the third British UFC champion in history, following in the footsteps of Michael Bisping and current welterweight king Leon Edwards, thanks to two impressively powerful right hands.
When the victory started to sink in, he became very emotional inside the Octagon. Dana White gave him his new belt, which he dedicated to his trainer dad Andy in his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan.
Aspinall remarked, “I can’t even tell you (how it feels).” “The past two and a half weeks have been crazy. You should f***ing do something if you ever get the chance to do it but are afraid to.
“This belt is dedicated to my father because, despite all of my hard work over the years, he has worked harder than anyone else. Although I had some difficulty with the distance, we eventually made it.”
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His victory was celebrated by fans in the UK who had stayed up into the early hours to watch him. One hailed: “Tom Aspinall is an absolute joke. What a monster of a man. Get in there.”
“Tom Aspinall is a f***ing monster! Can’t believe everyone was doubting him,” echoed a second, while a third exclaimed: “Aspinall is a f***ing monster! A guy that big moving that fast and still hitting that hard is incredible…”
The Wigan-born star had managed to hold back the tears well until he crossed paths with Bisping – who also won his middlweight belt on 17 days’ notice in 2016 – on his way back to the changing room. They embraced and Aspinall had to wipe his face clean.
Having had time to reflect on what had just happened, he later told TNT Sports’ Caroline Pearce: “Mission accomplished. I made a mission to myself after the knee injury.
“I decided I’m gonna go all in or I’m going to retire, and I decided to go all in. It’s not often you see me lost for words but this went better than I could ever have imagined.”
Aspinall clarified after the knockout, saying, “I’ve never been that nervous in my life. I had trouble initially getting my range with him.
“I was trying to back up and push my gum shield back in when he shot me, as I remember. To be honest, I can’t even recall the remainder.”
Jon Jones, the heavyweight champion, is out due to injury, so Aspinall plans to defend his interim title and has set a date for it. His first words were, “I want to be the best heavyweight ever,” and then, “My goal is to fight on UFC 300.” That’s ideal—April, around my birthday.”
