Aspinall Ready To Face Pereira At Heavyweight – ‘It’s Gonna Be For Undisputed’
Tom Aspinall is ready to face Alex Pereira if he moves up to heavyweight.
Aspinall has put himself in a title shot after stopping Curtis Blaydes in his last fight at UFC 304. It avenged his only loss at the UFC which took place in 2022. After his win, Aspinall called out Jon Jones. The Heavyweight Champion is preparing for his next fight against Stipe Miocic. They were meant to face each other at UFC 304 last year. The fight never went ahead as Jones withdrew with a pectoral muscle injury. Whit has confiremd that Aspinall will face the winner of Jones-Moicic.
That shut down Jones’ desire to face Pereira next. The Brazilian hinted that he could move up to heavyweight after stopping Jiri Prochazka at UFC 303. Jones preferred that fight as it was much bigger than Aspinall on a global scale. Pereira was open to moving up to heavyweight. However, he only wanted to do so if he could face the champion.
Aspinall Vs. Pereira
“It doesn’t interest me to fight [Aspinall] at the moment. To be honest, heavyweight isn’t my goal, it isn’t my main focus. Tom Aspinall, not talking him as a fighter, I’m talking positions. I think I’m in another position now. It doesn’t make sense for me to fight for the interim belt, honestly. I am not taking anything away from [Aspinall], I respect him a lot. I think he’s an incredible athlete, a guy that is very dangerous technically. I’m just talking about fighting for an interim belt. There’s no point for me,” Pereira said
If Aspinall beats Jones, he is ready to make that fight.
“The guy’s a superstar in the sport, so you do whatever you want. But, it would be, for sure, if we’re both on the same page, it would be for the undisputed heavyweight title. So, maybe see you next year at some point. Like I’ve said, I’ve got a lot of respect for Alex Pereira, what he’s done for the sport, especially in a short amount of time…But if we’re gonna make it happen, it’s gonna be for the undisputed title, so see him there,” Aspinall stated
Will It Happen?
There is a chance that Aspinall could face Pereira next. Dana White has said Miocic will retire after facing Jones. Bones is the favoirte to come out victorious, although there suggestions he could retire if he gets a win. That would leave Aspinall free to fight for the vacant title against Pereira. Alex is already a two-weight world champion, having won the title at middleweight and light heavyweight.
Facing Aspinall at heavyweight and securing a belt would place him as one of the best of all time. However, Alex and Tom have also hinted at crossing over into boxing. Pereira indicated his desire after Anthony Joshua suggested it. Jake Paul then responded by calling out Alex. Meanwhile, Aspinall helped Tyson Fury prepare for Francis Ngannou. Tom also has one boxing fight on his record, stopping Tamas Bajzath in 2017. There is a narrative in place for them to box, too.
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