The UFC London main card was headlined by what should have been a thrilling clash of heavyweights. Instead, Aspinall vs Blaydes ended almost as soon as it began, with Tom Aspinall plummeting to the ground clutching his knee in the opening moments of the first round. At the post-fight press conference, Blaydes, who earned himself a (somewhat dubious) win on the night thanks to the sudden knee injury, shut down any discussion of a rematch.
“I have no idea what happened. He landed the kick, I went to counter, he dropped. That’s all I know. I’m frustrated. No one wants to win like that. I got the win, I hold my ranking, I get the money. But without a highlight, did it even happen? Did the fight even happen? Is this going to be in the news next week? Am I going to get an interview with Ariel Helwani? Am I going to be on YouTube? Am I going to gain 50,000 Instagram followers? No. So I’m disappointed about all of that, but nothing we can do about it now.”
Blaydes Shuts Down Aspinall Rematch “I’m Not Risking My Ranking”
Blaydes also felt that he was ahead in the few exchanges of the fight that we saw. “Everyone was hyping up [Aspinall’s] speed. He’s not as fast as you guys make it seem to be. I know it was only 15 seconds, but every exchange, he got touched. In a lot of his highlights, when he’s sparking these guys, it’s because they’re stagnant. They don’t move their feet, which is what I do. So I just don’t believe the hype. I don’t think he’s as fast as everyone thought he was.
Obviously he’s also not as big as everyone made him out to be. I felt like I was bigger, more athletic, more explosive, and obviously I think my bones are stronger, because he landed the kick on me and he ended up getting injured.”
Tom Aspinall was undefeated in the UFC heading into this fight, and will doubtless be disappointed with the outcome. Curtis Blaydes, at seven wins in his past eight fights, is eyeing a title shot, and worries that this outcome could jeopardize his chances. For that reason, a rematch is off the cards.
“I’m not risking my ranking [for an immediate rematch]. I won the fight. Heading into this fight, I envisioned the winner — which is me — would be fighting the winner of [Tai] Tuivasa and [Ciryl] 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.
As long as I knock out the next guy, the hype’s back. MMA is like that. You could win four fights in a row, lose a fight, everyone says you suck. You could lose three in a row, win one, and you’re the greatest in the world. So the last fight’s the only one that matters.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbKh8Flr8-o
