Tom Aspinall will face the most important opponent of his career so far at UFC 295. Francis Ngannou is out of the UFC, Jon Jones has indicated that he might retire after his next fight, and Stipe Miocic turned 41 this year. It is safe to say that the heavyweight division is ripe for a change of guard to the next generation. And that is exactly what the upcoming Tom Aspinall vs. Sergei Pavlovich bout for the interim heavyweight title could set off.

While Pavlovich is a knockout artist, having finished the last seven of his opponents in the first round, Aspinall is a different breed of heavyweight. And of late, many, like Michael Bisping, have been singing the Englishman’s praises. However, one man has been singing Aspinall’s praises since before anyone else: Tyson Fury‘s father, John.

John Fury is confident Tom Aspinall will achieve greatness

Tom Aspinall has trained with the Fury camp for over two years. He had been regularly sparring with Tyson Fury before the boxer fought Wladimir Klitschko for the heavyweight title in 2015. Fury went on to defeat the Ukrainian via a unanimous decision and became the new lineal boxing heavyweight champion of the world. And his time at the Fury’s gym impressed the Furys. John Fury, Tyson’s father, spoke about Aspinall back in 2021, heaping praises on the Manchester native.

“I’m telling you now, Tom Aspinall will do big things in the UFC… Because he can actually box well, punches hard, and moves really well for a heavyweight. He’s a big guy, six foot four or five, 18 stone,” John said in an interview.

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The elder Fury was confident Aspinall would be a success in the UFC. John felt the UFC fighter was so talented and good at boxing that he could be a successful boxer if he chose to crossover. ‘Big John’ observed that Aspinall’s power and quickness for a heavyweight set him apart from other heavyweights and would bring him a lot of success. He was also struck by the Englishman’s heart, willingness to learn, and warrior attitude.

“But he’s got bottle and guts to burn, and he’s a big strong lad. He’s willing to learn and improve his game. I like him, I like his attitude, he’s a warrior like Tyson. Keep doing your thing. Tom Aspinall… You’re great, mate, I like you a lot,” the former journeyman boxer added. And Aspinall has certainly validated John’s comments with his recent actions.

Aspinall agrees to fight boogeyman Pavlovich on short notice

UFC 295 was originally supposed to be headlined by Jon Jones’ first heavyweight title defense against the UFC heavyweight GOAT Stipe Miocic. However, an injury weeks before the November 11 card forced Jones to pull out and the UFC to postpone the bout pending ‘Bones’ recovery. Jiri Prochazka vs. Alex Pereira has been promoted to being the new main event of the Madison Square Garden event.

Also Read: Jon Jones Finally Gets Toppled Off Top Spot by Islam Makhachev on UFC’s Latest P4P Rankings

And Aspinall has earned a lot of respect from the MMA world by agreeing to fight Pavlovich, the scariest fighter in the UFC currently, in the co-main event, on short notice. The Russian was the backup fighter for Jones-Miocic, but Aspinall took it on just over two-weeks notice, confirming John Fury’s assessment of him having guts and being a warrior.

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