Being heavyweight champion is one of the most chest-thumping experiences a fighter can have, if for no other reason than that the title comes with the nickname of “the baddest man on the planet.”
This glorified designation first became widespread in boxing in the late 1980s during Mike Tyson’s heavyweight championship reign. His aggression, striking power and fearsome demeanor defeated his opponents through intimidation as well as in hand-to-hand combat. No one has duplicated his intimidating aura in boxing since, and the nickname of “baddest man” has inevitably transferred to MMA, a sport with a far wider variety of combat involvement than the Marquess of Queensberry could have imagined. Just ask the three-weight boxing champion james toneywho was easily swept off his feet Randy Couture Beaten within 18 seconds and for their entire duration One-sided 2010 UFC fight.
When an MMA heavyweight receives recognition as “the baddest man on the planet”, it is often a result of the story behind his championship wins. Francis Ngannou Captured the UFC belt in 2021 by knockout stipe miocicWhose three title defenses set a heavyweight record that still stands. Miocic won the title for the first time by knockout in 2016 fabricio werdumWho had previously earned a place of honor in the history of the game by producing two of the greatest finishes of all time, Fedor Emelianenko And Cain VelasquezVelasquez, whose versatile skill set and revving engine made him different from any previous heavyweight, became UFC champion in 2010 with an iconic destruction of the seemingly indestructible. Brock Lesnar,
Compare those spectacular climbs to the top of the mountain with the uninterrupted ascent to the current owner of the UFC heavyweight belt, Tom AspinallWhile Ngannou, Miocic and many other greats established their dominance with spectacular victories, Aspinall never dethroned a reigning champion to capture the title. UFC just raised him up From interim champion to undisputed champion To fill the vacancy created by retirement four months ago. john jones,
Aspinall will defend the belt for the first time on Saturday, facing a title contender for the third time Cyril Gane At UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (2 p.m. ET on ESPN PPV, prelims at 10 a.m. ET on ESPN+). But before the new champion steps into the Octagon this weekend, here’s what you need to know about him: Aspinall has already established himself as one of the most dominant heavyweights in MMA history.
If this sounds precocious or even absurd, consider that this is not a declaration that Aspinall (15-3) is the greatest heavyweight of all time. This is an honor usually given to Emelianenko, who compiled a 29-fight undefeated streak that lasted almost the entire first decade of the 2000s.
Aspinall isn’t even MMA’s most skilled heavyweight. There’s a strong argument for Miocic, who has defended the UFC title more than anyone else and owns the heavyweight record with six title fight wins. Perhaps the most accomplished is Couture, the only fighter to reign as UFC heavyweight champion three times.
Each of them is exceptionally strong, but none has dominated like Aspinall.
Aspinall is 8-1 in the UFC, with his only loss coming due to a strange non-contact injury. he blew out his knee In the opening seconds of the 2022 match curtis bladesAnd in addition to being saddled with a 15-second “TKO (injury)” loss, Aspinall was sidelined for a year. He will step up again with the Blades in 2024 win by knockout in one minuteThat win was perfectly in line with the rest of Aspinall’s UFC resume, as all but one of his eight wins finished in the first round, with the most recent three finishing in a time of 1 minute, 13 seconds or faster.
According to ESPN Research, Aspinall’s seven first-round wins are the most by any fighter in any weight class in the promotion’s modern era (since UFC 28 in 2000) through nine Octagon appearances.
Some other shining Aspinall stats:
• He has the lowest average fight time in UFC history (2 minutes, 2 seconds).
• He has spent the least amount of time (1 second) in the bottom position of any fighter in UFC history.
• His 4.09 knockdown average per 15 minutes of fight time is the highest in UFC heavyweight history (second highest at any weight class).
• His average of 8.07 significant strikes per minute is the highest in UFC heavyweight history (third highest in any weight class).
• His significant strike differential of plus-5.18 per minute (strikes landed minus strikes absorbed) is the highest in UFC history.
Aspinall is the epitome of dominance. Unprecedented dominance.
Emelianenko, for all his greatness, had to go through dangerous moments during his long undefeated run, none more so than in a Pride fight in 2004, when he was hit by a head suplex Kevin Randleman (before turning things around for their 15th consecutive win). And when Emelianenko was defeated by Werdum in a 2010 Strikeforce match, it was the first of three consecutive losses. One can be the greatest of all time but cannot dominate all the time.
Miocic also had his ups and downs. He holds the heavyweight title defense record, but has lost four times in the Octagon – though Miocic should get a pass on the last one. Against Jones less than a year agoBecause he was retired for three and a half years before returning to the cage as a 42-year-old shadow of his former self. However, even in his prime, Miocic was not as dominant as Aspinall.
Aspinall doesn’t dominate couture either. Neither will Ngannou, Werdum or anyone else. Couture had those three heavyweight reigns but also lost three heavyweight title bouts. Ngannou is just as explosive as Aspinall, if not more, but he suffered consecutive losses to Miocic in 2018 and derrick lewisWerdum had unparalleled grappling chops – 12 submissions among 24 wins – but lost nine times in his career. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira Couture, defeated Werdum, Mark Coleman, Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic And dan henderson But lost 10 matches. Then there’s Jones, who is undoubtedly the greatest of all time at light heavyweight, but having only competed at heavyweight twice, he is classified as incomplete.
If anyone from MMA’s past showed Aspinall-level supreme dominance, it was it Ronda RouseyHe won his first 12 fights, all of them by finish, all but one in the first round. The final three battles during that untouched run ended in 16, 14 and 34 seconds. But then everything fell apart, thanks to “Rowdy Rhonda” holly holm And Amanda Nunes,
The story was almost the same in heavyweight also shane carvinHe also posted a 12-0 record on fast finishes – in his case, every one of them coming in Round 1. Carwin was on his way to adding a 13th demolition, until Lesnar was defeated in the first round and survived until Horn. When Round 2 started, Carwin was in uncharted waters and Lesnar dunked him. So much for big boy dominance.
Some might say Aspinall, like Jones, deserves an incomplete grade. But although he has yet to make a single defense of the undisputed title, Aspinall once put his interim belt on hold while waiting (in vain) for Jones to return. He owns victories over former UFC Heavyweight Champion, andrei arlovskiAnd if he beats Gane on Saturday (as a -425 favorite by ESPN BET), Aspinall will have defeated the four UFC heavyweights ranked right behind him in the ESPN divisional rankings. That’s a heavy dose of dominance for a career that feels as if it’s just getting started.
At 32, Aspinall has had time to achieve a lot and rise to any challenges that lie ahead. No one has slowed down his role yet. Will this weekend add another spectacular chapter to a story that has been entirely his, or will it completely change Tom Aspinall’s story?
