Tom Aspinall is going to get some extra work in while he waits for the logjam atop the UFC heavyweight division to clear.
The Briton, who late last year claimed the organisation’s interim heavyweight crown with a first-round finish of Sergei Pavlovich, has been vocal in his pursuit of Jon Jones, the man who holds the division’s primary belt. However Jones, who was intended to fight Stipe Miocic last year, remains on the sidelines after sustaining a pectoral injury that sidelined him for several month, has remained committed to fulfilling the Miocic scheduling — forcing Aspinall to look elsewhere for his next trip to the cage.
And it appears that it is set.
Speaking on social media, Aspinall said: “I had a meeting with the UFC. It has now been confirmed that I am fighting on UFC Manchester, so I’m back home preparing for that now.”
UFC boss Dana White has previously stated that the UFC will likely return to the UK in the coming months for a numbered pay-per-view card which could feature Aspinall as well as reigning welterweight champion Leon Edwards. It has been reported that the promotion is targeting a late July date.
Aspinall added: “I’ve started the early stages of training camp. I’m just waiting for my opponent to accept. So stay tuned, keep up with the socials, and keep up with the YouTube channel. I’ll be announcing it very soon.”
It has been speculated that Curtis Blaydes, whom Aspinall sustained a knee injury against almost two years ago in the opening seconds of a prior meeting in a UFC card in London, is his most likely opponent. Since that fight, Blaydes was defeated by Sergei Pavlovich and more recently last month scored a knockout win against the dangerous Brazilian Jailton Almeida.
