Tom Aspinall not ruling out a fight at UFC 286 despite knee injury
No.6-ranked UFC heavyweight Tom Aspinall has said that he's not ruling out a fight at UFC 286 despite suffering a devastating knee injury against Curtis Blaydes last July.
The Manchester, England, native tore his meniscus and MCL, as well as suffering damage to his ACL, just seconds into his UFC London headliner against Blaydes. He underwent surgery soon after, ruling him out for the remainder of 2022.
But according to Sun Sports journalist Chisanga Malata, Tom Aspinall has expressed an interest in returning to the octagon as early as UFC 286 in March. However, his father is insistent that he heals up completely before returning to fighting.
Tom Aspinall is refusing to rule out a fight at UFC 286
🚨Tom Aspinall is refusing to rule out a fight at UFC 286🚨
"I'm not ruling it out. At the minute it's still like 14-15 weeks away."
"But can I get ready in 14 weeks? The answer is yes."
Aspinall's dad doesn't want him on the card and he says his knee has to "be one million %" https://t.co/krZUXX9WEn
The post quoted Aspinall as saying:
"I'm not ruling it out. At the minute, it's still like 14-15 weeks away. But can I get ready in 14 weeks? The answer is yes."
Up until facing Curtis Blaydes in his last outing, Tom Aspinall was unbeaten in the UFC with a 100% finishing rate. He has wins over top names in the heavyweight division like Andrei Arlovski, Sergei Spivak and Alexander Volkov. In five UFC wins, he has three knockouts and two submission victories.
Tom Aspinall has a UFC record of 5-1 and an overall MMA record of 12-3.
Tom Aspinall's tear through the heavyweight division prior to injury
Prior to Tom Aspinall's freak injury last year, he'd established himself as one of the biggest prospects in the heavyweight division, largely thanks to his well-rounded skill set. Aspinall can strike, grapple and seemingly moves like a welterweight.
The English mixed martial artist was introduced to the sport from a young age by his father and coach Andy Aspinall. Together, the father-son duo head Aspinall BJJ, where the heavyweight fighter acts as a coach.
Aspinall is a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and has won many British Open BJJ tournaments. Apart from jiu-jitsu, Aspinall also extensively trained in wrestling and boxing from an early age.
Hence, it's no surprise that Aspinall has managed to dispatch some of the top names in the heavyweight division in such a short time. He made his promotional debut at UFC on ESPN 14 against Jake Collier, whom he knocked out with a knee and punches in the first round.
In his next bout at UFC Fight Night 179, Aspinall knocked out Alan Baudot in the first round. At UFC Fight Night 185, he faced veteran Andrei Arlovski and submitted him with a rear-naked choke in the second frame. He next faced No.12-ranked Sergei Spivak at UFC Fight Night 191, where he achieved his third promotional knockout win.
In his headliner fight against Alexander Volkov at UFC Fight Night 204, Aspinall put on a masterclass, submitting the Russian with a straight armbar in the first round.
It's unclear as to when Aspinall will return to the octagon, though he's eyeing a return for March's London event.