"To come and see me after for a beer makes you a legend in my eyes" - Tom Aspinall thanks Curtis Blaydes for being a "true gentleman" in heartfelt post-injury statement
Tom Aspinall has showered praise on recent opponent Curtis Blaydes for being a "true gentleman" in the aftermath of their recently concluded matchup at UFC London. Aspinall and Blaydes headlined the event, which took place at the O2 Arena in London, in a fight that unfortunately didn't last beyond 15 seconds.
Aspinall suffered a freak knee injury right at the beginning of the fight, rendering him unable to continue any further. As a result, Blaydes was announced the winner via TKO (doctor's stoppage) despite not having landed a single significant strike in the fight.
'Razor' was unhappy with how the fight panned out and for not being able to perform in front of a sold-out crowd at the O2 Arena in London. However, he displayed a true sporting spirit by visiting his injured opponent and having a beer with him.
Tom Aspinall was clearly touched by the gesture and took to social media to thank Curtis Blaydes, among other people, in a heartfelt statement. He wrote:
"Last night wasn’t my night, my training camp in the build up to the fight has been brilliant. Sometimes these things happen; now is the time to recover, rebuild and come back stronger! Wanted to say a huge thank you to the UFC, the doctors and paramedics that looked after me. But, also to the fans! For all the messages you’ve sent and support you’ve given me, in the build up to the fight and after the freak injury. You’re all amazing! Want to thank Curtis for being a true gentleman, it didn’t work out how we both wanted, but to come and see me after for a beer makes you a legend in my eyes. Finally, my team and my family. We all know this is elite sport, we live to fight another day! Big love Tom"
Thank you Twitter
@ufc https://t.co/tlNaQRTRjK
Curtis Blaydes interested in fighting winner of upcoming clash between Tai Tuivasa and Ciryl Gane next
Curtis Blaydes has shown respect towards his opponent but is unwilling to run it back with Aspinall once he recovers from the knee injury. Blaydes was confident about beating Aspinall at UFC London and despite the unfortunate manner in which the fight ended, 'Razor' picked up yet another win.
Now that he has beaten Aspinall, Blaydes isn't willing to risk rematching his lower-ranked, former opponent. Instead, he wants to fight the winner of the upcoming clash between Tai Tuivasa and Ciryl Gane instead. At the post-fight press conference following the event, Curtis Blaydes weighed in on a potential rematch with Aspinall:
"I’m not risking my ranking [with a rematch]. I won the fight. Heading into this fight I envisioned the winner, which is me, would be fighting the winner of Tuivasa and Gane. So I’m not going to pass up an opportunity to fight those guys when it’s right there to wait for Tom Aspinall to heal and run it back."