UFC Predictions: UFC Fight Night: Curtis Blaydes vs. Tom Aspinall

Curtis Blaydes and Tom Aspinall square off in London in this weekend's headline bout [Image via @tomaspinallofficial on Instagram]

This weekend sees the UFC return to London, England, for its latest Fight Night, and the promotion will be hoping to repeat the success of their previous trip there in March.

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Just 5 days until we are back at @TheO2 https://t.co/gazVTDLWki

UFC Fight Night: Curtis Blaydes vs. Tom Aspinall features a big-time heavyweight main event and a number of UK favorites competing up and down the card.

Here are the predicted outcomes for UFC Fight Night: Curtis Blaydes vs. Tom Aspinall.

#1. UFC heavyweight division: Curtis Blaydes vs. Tom Aspinall

Can Tom Aspinall pick up the biggest win of his career over Curtis Blaydes?

Depending on the future of current UFC heavyweight champ Francis Ngannou and the status of wild cards like Jon Jones, this bout could well decide who takes the next title shot in the division. So will Curtis Blaydes or Tom Aspinall come out on top?

This is a genuinely difficult fight to pick, purely because right now, we just don’t know how high Aspinall’s ceiling is. The product of Liverpool has never really been tested inside the octagon, blowing through five opponents in a row and stepping up the ladder hasn’t affected him either.

Aspinall has shown quick hands, strong knockout power, good takedowns, and dangerous ground skills in his time with the promotion, and more importantly, he’s proven to be a deadly finisher, too. Just one of his opponents – Andrei Arlovski – has made it out of the first round with him.

Just incase you needed reminding...

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However, outside of Alexander Volkov, who he did put away in impressive fashion, Aspinall hasn’t fought the top fighters in the division yet – something he’ll be doing when he faces Blaydes this weekend.

‘Razor’ has been with the UFC now for over six years, and in that time, he’s fought a who’s who of elite fighters. More importantly, he’s beaten the likes of Junior dos Santos, Jairzinho Rozenstruik, and Alistair Overeem and has only ever lost to Francis Ngannou (on two occasions) and Derrick Lewis.

Blaydes’ big strength is his wrestling. He holds the record for the most takedowns landed in the history of the UFC's heavyweight division with 62. However, ‘Razor’ has also developed a strong boxing game and most recently scored a standing KO over Chris Daukaus.

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If he’s got one weakness, then it’d probably be his chin, as he has been knocked out cold twice, but those knockouts came at the hands of two of the most powerful punchers in the promotion, so perhaps that criticism is unfair.

Overall, this one should come down to whether Aspinall can stop the takedown and whether he’s got the raw finishing ability to take Blaydes out before he can really impose his will. Can he do it? Perhaps, but it’s hard to pick someone who hasn’t faced a wrestler of this caliber to beat someone like Blaydes yet.

With that considered, the pick is Blaydes via decision, with Aspinall via knockout being a solid outside bet.

The Pick: Blaydes via unanimous decision

#2. UFC middleweight division: Jack Hermansson vs. Chris Curtis

Can Chris Curtis pull off another upset KO when he faces Jack Hermansson?

Initially, this co-headliner would’ve seen UK favorite Darren Till facing off against Jack Hermansson, but with ‘The Gorilla’ sidelined due to injury, Chris Curtis has stepped in on late notice for the biggest fight of his UFC career.

To be fair to ‘Action Man’, his move to take this fight is understandable. Initially coming into the promotion as a significant underdog against hot prospect Phil Hawes, Curtis shocked everyone by pulling off a comeback knockout and then delivered another one against another prospect in Brendan Allen.

Statement. Made. 😤

That's two finishes in a MONTH for @Actionman513 💢 #UFCVegas44 https://t.co/KXiNqVoTLC

More recently, he was able to edge out grappling ace Rodolfo Vieira on the scorecards, so if he can defeat Hermansson here, he could be on the cusp of a surprising run into middleweight title contention.

However, he’ll definitely have his hands full. ‘The Joker’ has far more experience than Curtis, with 14 fights in the octagon alone. During that time, he’s also fought some of the best fighters in the division, picking up wins over Kelvin Gastelum, Jacare Souza, and Edmen Shahbazyan.

Jack Hermansson with a deadly heel hook in about 75 seconds. Huge win for the joker over Kelvin Gastelum. Back on track after the Cannonier fight late last year.

Sure, the Swede has suffered his fair share of losses, too – including a defeat to Sean Strickland in his most recent bout – but he doesn’t have all that many weaknesses outside of a slightly questionable chin.

The biggest strength that Hermansson has is the fact that his arms are so long for a middleweight. He stands at 6’1” but possesses a near-78” reach, giving him a three-inch advantage over Curtis this weekend. More to the point, he knows how to use those long arms, fighting behind a stiff jab on the feet and being an expert at snatching up chokes on the ground.

Basically, to win this fight, Curtis will have to find a way to get around Hermansson’s reach to clock him with something heavy, and he’s probably going to have to weather a storm to do so, given ‘The Joker’ has a penchant for pushing a torrid pace.

Overall, Curtis could win this fight via knockout, but it honestly doesn’t feel likely, as Hermansson’s experience and finishing ability, as well as his calm nature in the octagon, should pay off for him.

The Pick: Hermansson via unanimous decision

#3. UFC Fight Night: The Main Card

Rising UK stars Paddy Pimblett and Molly McCann are both in action on this weekend's main card

In a big lightweight clash, UK favorite Paddy Pimblett faces Jordan Leavitt. After he blew through 'Kazula' Vargas in March, many fans were hoping that Pimblett would be faced with a ranked opponent here, but that isn’t the case, despite Leavitt having a solid UFC record of 3-1.

It's a bit of a tricky one to pick as Leavitt does seem to be a talented fighter, but ‘The Monkey King’ has never really faced anyone quite as talented as ‘The Baddy’, and it’s hard to imagine the promotion setting Pimblett up to lose just yet. Therefore, the pick is Pimblett via first-round TKO.

Paddy Pimblett wins by submission!

He's forced Kazula Vargas to tap in the first round!

#UFC #BBCMMA

In a light-heavyweight clash, Nikita Krylov battles Alexander Gustafsson. This one should come down to whether Gustafsson has anything left to offer at all. At his peak, ‘The Mauler’ likely would’ve taken ‘The Miner’ apart, but after a career’s worth of wars and injuries, he no longer looks like the same fighter and hasn’t won since 2017.

Krylov is not the best fighter in the division and has only won once in his last four fights, but he’s willing to push a nasty pace, can scramble excellently, and will finish his opponents given the chance. Therefore, the pick is Krylov via second-round submission.

In a flyweight bout, Molly McCann takes on Hannah Goldy. After somewhat struggling in her early octagon days, McCann appears to have hit her stride now and was last seen pulling off one of the best KOs of the year thus far with her spinning elbow finish of Luana Carolina.

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On the other hand, Goldy has shown raw talent and is an excellent athlete, but she also lacks the experience of McCann and is 1-2 in her octagon career. This one is a super-tough fight to pick, but it’s likely that McCann will be able to pull off a decision.

Finally, Paul Craig faces Volkan Oezdemir in a light-heavyweight bout. This one is interesting as Oezdemir has become a high-level gatekeeper in the division now and is still capable of causing some damage. However, he can be beaten, most notably if a fighter can push a torrid pace while avoiding his power punches.

Craig is on the best run of his career, winning five of his last six bouts and avoiding defeat since 2019. He’s also deadly on the ground and could definitely take Oezdemir out there if he can get him down – but his chin is slightly questionable, meaning ‘No Time’ cannot be counted out.

Again, this is difficult to call, but the pick is Craig via third-round submission.

#4. UFC Fight Night: The Prelims

Picks in bold

UFC lightweight bout: Marc Diakiese vs. Damir Hadzovic

UFC featherweight bout: Nathaniel Wood vs. Charles Rosa

UFC featherweight bout: Makwan Amirkhani vs. Jonathan Pearce

UFC flyweight bout: Muhammad Mokaev vs. Charles Johnson

UFC lightweight bout: Jai Herbert vs. Kyle Nelson

UFC flyweight bout: Victoria Leonardo vs. Mandy Bohm

UFC welterweight bout: Claudio Silva vs. Nicolas Dalby

UFC lightweight bout: Ludovit Klein vs. Mason Jones