Current interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall is all set to make an appearance at UFC 304 next. The 31-year-old will take on Curtis Blaydes for the second time in his career. In their previous meeting, Aspinall lost the fight via knockout, much to the surprise of many. He will now be desperate to avenge his loss when the pair meets at UFC 304 next.
The hard-hitting Brit recently sat down for a chat with Kacper Rosolowski and Denis Shkuratov of the submission radio. While speaking to the hosts just for a change, this time, Aspinall spoke about Alex Pereira and not Jon Jones.
Tom Aspinall labels Alex Pereira as a ‘scary dude’ in his recent interview
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There are very few fighters in the UFC who can intimidate Tom Aspinall. However, it seems that the 31-year-old does respect the power of ‘Poatan’. In one of his recent interviews, Aspinall shared his honest opinion about the Brazilian. The pair previously had a strange interaction at the UFC 295 press conference, where Pereira kind of sized up the Brit.
Aspinall, in one of his past interviews, mentioned that he felt Pereira might just want to face him next. On being asked whether he would like to face Pereira next, the Brit replied, “First of all, let me start by saying Alex Pereira is a f…ng scary dude. The guy does carry a lot of power and you got to remember he was like Glory Kickboxing champion before. “
The light heavyweight champion has been vocal about moving to the heavyweight division next in his career. However, there is still no confirmation about it, and Aspinall isn’t worried about it at the moment. He further added, “I didn’t really think about it, I only really think about fighters like when they’ve actually signed a contract. Interesting fight for sure, but if he doesn’t want to move up to Heavyweight. I don’t know the guy. I’ve got a lot of respect for what he’s done. The guy is really good. I am a fan of his. He’s f. . ng awesome and I wish him all the best, whatever he chooses.”
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In most of his interviews, Aspinall not only maintains his composure but also shows his class. This was exactly the case in one of his latest interviews, where he termed Jon Jones a legend.
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Tom Aspinall rates Jon Jones very highly, despite their ongoing feud
There are very few fighters in the UFC who have had the patience of Tom Aspinall. Despite bagging an impressive victory at UFC 295, Aspinall has yet to receive his title shot against Jon Jones. The 31-year-old even went face-to-face with ‘Bones’ in one of the recent events just to get his attention. However, it did not affect the champion, as he had no interest in facing ‘Honey Badger’. The New Mexico resident has made it clear that a fight against Aspinall will do no good to his legacy and career. It now seems that the battle has finally come to an end.
The Brit recently appeared for an interview with ‘The Mac Life’ and shared his opinion about Jones. Although he is focused on his next opponent, he still has a lot of respect for him. Aspinall said, “Honestly, I think Jon Jones is a legend. I respect what he’s done in the Octagon, but right now, he’s quite irrelevant to what I’m doing. Like I’m fighting Curtis Blaydes… I need to be 1 million percent focused on this. And this is said with a lot of respect; I have nothing against Jon regardless of what he says; it’s all bollocks, but I’m like 100% invested in beating Curtis.”
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Aspinall will be desperate to win his UFC 304 fight to get into the title race once again. However, he must not get casual against an opponent he has lost to before. Can he level the scores at UFC 304 next? Let us know in the comments below.