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UFC heavyweight Tom Aspinall has commented on whether or not his return from injury will line up with UFC 286, set for London next March.
Aspinall has certainly experienced the highs and lows of the fight game in 2022. While the year started with a victory over perennial contender Alexander Volkov in front of his home fans, it ended in disastrous fashion when he made his way back to England’s capital four months later.
In the biggest fight of his career to date, the surging heavyweight returned to the headline spotlight in London to face longtime top-five contender Curtis Blaydes. But in just 15 seconds, the fight was over and Aspinall’s UFC record was blemished for the first time.
But rather than a knockout or submission, the bout’s conclusion came as the result of a serious knee injury suffered by the home favorite.
Soon after, the Manchester native underwent surgery to repair a torn MCL, torn meniscus, and damaged ACL. With that, Aspinall was condemned to a lengthy period of recovery on the sidelines.
Aspinall Won’t Force His Comeback
Now five months on from the setback, the #6-ranked heavyweight is back in the gym and seemingly nearing the end of his rehabilitation. With that in mind, some have pointed to the UFC’s return across the pond for its first UK-held pay-per-view since 2016 as a possible return date.
After two events this year, London will once again play host to the MMA leader in March 2023, with UFC 286 set to go down in front of the enthusiastic British fanbase. During a recent episode of Michael Bisping’s Believe You Me podcast, Aspinall was asked whether he expects to make it onto the card, which will go down eight months post-injury.
While he prefaced his answer by insisting that he’d love nothing more than to make the walk at the event, Aspinall noted that he won’t rush to make his comeback. Knowing that his next opponent will likely see the previously compromised leg as a target, the Englishman won’t be putting it at risk until he knows it’s at 100%.
“Obviously, I’m a fighter, I’m a competitor. I would love to fight in March,” Aspinall said. “But at the same time, f*ck everybody else. I’m gonna do what’s right for me. So, until my leg is — right, this is the mindset I’m in right now. I’m not coming back until I am 100% confident that I can absolutely slap the rest of the division, every one of them. I’m not coming back until I’m 100%.
“The way that I think, if somebody has an injury and I know about that injury, and there’s money on the line, you better believe that I’m gonna be attacking that injury,” Aspinall added. “So before I had an injury, nobody knew about the injury. Now I did have an injury and everybody knows about it, so obviously, the other heavyweights will be aiming for that knee. I need to be 100 million percent confident that I can take 20, 30, however many kicks to the knee… I don’t know when I’ll be coming back.”
Someone told me today that 7/8 main UFC main events this year have ended thru injury. It stings to be one of these. Look forward to returning in 2023 and being back 100%. Hungrier than ever— Tom Aspinall (@AspinallMMA) October 30, 2022
While it seems likely that he’ll be absent from the UFC’s return to UK soil in early 2023, Aspinall’s fans will no doubt be thankful that he is taking the necessary precautions to ensure that he’s at full fitness when he makes his return, especially given the promise he’s shown in the UFC to date.
Please provide transcription credit with a link to this article if you use any of these quotes.
UFC heavyweight Tom Aspinall has commented on whether or not his return from injury will line up with UFC 286, set for London next March.
Aspinall has certainly experienced the highs and lows of the fight game in 2022. While the year started with a victory over perennial contender Alexander Volkov in front of his home fans, it ended in disastrous fashion when he made his way back to England’s capital four months later.
In the biggest fight of his career to date, the surging heavyweight returned to the headline spotlight in London to face longtime top-five contender Curtis Blaydes. But in just 15 seconds, the fight was over and Aspinall’s UFC record was blemished for the first time.
But rather than a knockout or submission, the bout’s conclusion came as the result of a serious knee injury suffered by the home favorite.
Soon after, the Manchester native underwent surgery to repair a torn MCL, torn meniscus, and damaged ACL. With that, Aspinall was condemned to a lengthy period of recovery on the sidelines.
Aspinall Won’t Force His Comeback
Now five months on from the setback, the #6-ranked heavyweight is back in the gym and seemingly nearing the end of his rehabilitation. With that in mind, some have pointed to the UFC’s return across the pond for its first UK-held pay-per-view since 2016 as a possible return date.
After two events this year, London will once again play host to the MMA leader in March 2023, with UFC 286 set to go down in front of the enthusiastic British fanbase. During a recent episode of Michael Bisping’s Believe You Me podcast, Aspinall was asked whether he expects to make it onto the card, which will go down eight months post-injury.
While he prefaced his answer by insisting that he’d love nothing more than to make the walk at the event, Aspinall noted that he won’t rush to make his comeback. Knowing that his next opponent will likely see the previously compromised leg as a target, the Englishman won’t be putting it at risk until he knows it’s at 100%.
“Obviously, I’m a fighter, I’m a competitor. I would love to fight in March,” Aspinall said. “But at the same time, f*ck everybody else. I’m gonna do what’s right for me. So, until my leg is — right, this is the mindset I’m in right now. I’m not coming back until I am 100% confident that I can absolutely slap the rest of the division, every one of them. I’m not coming back until I’m 100%.
“The way that I think, if somebody has an injury and I know about that injury, and there’s money on the line, you better believe that I’m gonna be attacking that injury,” Aspinall added. “So before I had an injury, nobody knew about the injury. Now I did have an injury and everybody knows about it, so obviously, the other heavyweights will be aiming for that knee. I need to be 100 million percent confident that I can take 20, 30, however many kicks to the knee… I don’t know when I’ll be coming back.”
Someone told me today that 7/8 main UFC main events this year have ended thru injury. It stings to be one of these. Look forward to returning in 2023 and being back 100%. Hungrier than ever
— Tom Aspinall (@AspinallMMA) October 30, 2022[/quote]
While it seems likely that he’ll be absent from the UFC’s return to UK soil in early 2023, Aspinall’s fans will no doubt be thankful that he is taking the necessary precautions to ensure that he’s at full fitness when he makes his return, especially given the promise he’s shown in the UFC to date.
Please provide transcription credit with a link to this article if you use any of these quotes.
Click here to view the article.
Aspinall has certainly experienced the highs and lows of the fight game in 2022. While the year started with a victory over perennial contender Alexander Volkov in front of his home fans, it ended in disastrous fashion when he made his way back to England’s capital four months later.
In the biggest fight of his career to date, the surging heavyweight returned to the headline spotlight in London to face longtime top-five contender Curtis Blaydes. But in just 15 seconds, the fight was over and Aspinall’s UFC record was blemished for the first time.
But rather than a knockout or submission, the bout’s conclusion came as the result of a serious knee injury suffered by the home favorite.
Soon after, the Manchester native underwent surgery to repair a torn MCL, torn meniscus, and damaged ACL. With that, Aspinall was condemned to a lengthy period of recovery on the sidelines.
Aspinall Won’t Force His Comeback
Now five months on from the setback, the #6-ranked heavyweight is back in the gym and seemingly nearing the end of his rehabilitation. With that in mind, some have pointed to the UFC’s return across the pond for its first UK-held pay-per-view since 2016 as a possible return date.
After two events this year, London will once again play host to the MMA leader in March 2023, with UFC 286 set to go down in front of the enthusiastic British fanbase. During a recent episode of Michael Bisping’s Believe You Me podcast, Aspinall was asked whether he expects to make it onto the card, which will go down eight months post-injury.
While he prefaced his answer by insisting that he’d love nothing more than to make the walk at the event, Aspinall noted that he won’t rush to make his comeback. Knowing that his next opponent will likely see the previously compromised leg as a target, the Englishman won’t be putting it at risk until he knows it’s at 100%.
“Obviously, I’m a fighter, I’m a competitor. I would love to fight in March,” Aspinall said. “But at the same time, f*ck everybody else. I’m gonna do what’s right for me. So, until my leg is — right, this is the mindset I’m in right now. I’m not coming back until I am 100% confident that I can absolutely slap the rest of the division, every one of them. I’m not coming back until I’m 100%.
“The way that I think, if somebody has an injury and I know about that injury, and there’s money on the line, you better believe that I’m gonna be attacking that injury,” Aspinall added. “So before I had an injury, nobody knew about the injury. Now I did have an injury and everybody knows about it, so obviously, the other heavyweights will be aiming for that knee. I need to be 100 million percent confident that I can take 20, 30, however many kicks to the knee… I don’t know when I’ll be coming back.”
Someone told me today that 7/8 main UFC main events this year have ended thru injury. It stings to be one of these. Look forward to returning in 2023 and being back 100%. Hungrier than ever— Tom Aspinall (@AspinallMMA) October 30, 2022
While it seems likely that he’ll be absent from the UFC’s return to UK soil in early 2023, Aspinall’s fans will no doubt be thankful that he is taking the necessary precautions to ensure that he’s at full fitness when he makes his return, especially given the promise he’s shown in the UFC to date.
Please provide transcription credit with a link to this article if you use any of these quotes.
Aspinall has certainly experienced the highs and lows of the fight game in 2022. While the year started with a victory over perennial contender Alexander Volkov in front of his home fans, it ended in disastrous fashion when he made his way back to England’s capital four months later.
In the biggest fight of his career to date, the surging heavyweight returned to the headline spotlight in London to face longtime top-five contender Curtis Blaydes. But in just 15 seconds, the fight was over and Aspinall’s UFC record was blemished for the first time.
But rather than a knockout or submission, the bout’s conclusion came as the result of a serious knee injury suffered by the home favorite.
Soon after, the Manchester native underwent surgery to repair a torn MCL, torn meniscus, and damaged ACL. With that, Aspinall was condemned to a lengthy period of recovery on the sidelines.
Aspinall Won’t Force His Comeback
Now five months on from the setback, the #6-ranked heavyweight is back in the gym and seemingly nearing the end of his rehabilitation. With that in mind, some have pointed to the UFC’s return across the pond for its first UK-held pay-per-view since 2016 as a possible return date.
After two events this year, London will once again play host to the MMA leader in March 2023, with UFC 286 set to go down in front of the enthusiastic British fanbase. During a recent episode of Michael Bisping’s Believe You Me podcast, Aspinall was asked whether he expects to make it onto the card, which will go down eight months post-injury.
While he prefaced his answer by insisting that he’d love nothing more than to make the walk at the event, Aspinall noted that he won’t rush to make his comeback. Knowing that his next opponent will likely see the previously compromised leg as a target, the Englishman won’t be putting it at risk until he knows it’s at 100%.
“Obviously, I’m a fighter, I’m a competitor. I would love to fight in March,” Aspinall said. “But at the same time, f*ck everybody else. I’m gonna do what’s right for me. So, until my leg is — right, this is the mindset I’m in right now. I’m not coming back until I am 100% confident that I can absolutely slap the rest of the division, every one of them. I’m not coming back until I’m 100%.
“The way that I think, if somebody has an injury and I know about that injury, and there’s money on the line, you better believe that I’m gonna be attacking that injury,” Aspinall added. “So before I had an injury, nobody knew about the injury. Now I did have an injury and everybody knows about it, so obviously, the other heavyweights will be aiming for that knee. I need to be 100 million percent confident that I can take 20, 30, however many kicks to the knee… I don’t know when I’ll be coming back.”
Someone told me today that 7/8 main UFC main events this year have ended thru injury. It stings to be one of these. Look forward to returning in 2023 and being back 100%. Hungrier than ever
— Tom Aspinall (@AspinallMMA) October 30, 2022[/quote]
While it seems likely that he’ll be absent from the UFC’s return to UK soil in early 2023, Aspinall’s fans will no doubt be thankful that he is taking the necessary precautions to ensure that he’s at full fitness when he makes his return, especially given the promise he’s shown in the UFC to date.
Please provide transcription credit with a link to this article if you use any of these quotes.
Click here to view the article.
