3. Tom Aspinall vs Curtis Blaydes 2
Tom Aspinall has still truly not had his skills fully tested inside the octagon, but Curtis Blaydes holds the potential to do so, which is what makes the UFC 304 co-main event so compelling. Aspinall has it all: lightning-quick hands, monstrous heavyweight power, and a skilled enough grappling game to be the first man to submit Alexander Volkov since 2010, when the Russian was just starting out. Although Blaydes did not finish Volkov in their own fight, his performance showcased exactly the skillset that could make Tom uncomfortable.
Of course, Manchester’s hero could also just rise to the occasion. Maybe he does have the cardio and composure to deal with being pushed into the later rounds by a determined opponent, maybe he does have the takedown defense to stop an All-American wrestling attack, maybe he will even just knock out Curtis before any of that matters. Either way, the fight will be exciting, but this is the rare heavyweight fight where that is not the ideal outcome for fans. With a fighter who seems to have the skills, athletic ability, and fight IQ to become a long-reigning champ – perhaps even an all-time great one day in a thin division – the more data we can collect the better.
That data has been scarce; Tom Aspinall’s UFC fights have lasted an average of two minutes and ten seconds, with only one fight going to the second round. Fans can always appreciate an early knockout by a talented striker, but even if this fight goes five rounds it should be entertaining still. Blaydes may have durability issues at times, but that only comes when facing the biggest hitters in the division like Ngannou, Lewis, and Pavlovich. Unfortunately, Aspinall hits hard too, but more importantly hits with precision and speed.
Curtis Blaydes should come out of the gate at UFC 304 trying to set up his wrestling. He has long had trouble connecting his striking to his MMA wrestling, but that is what he has to do to succeed. All is not necessarily lost if he is forced to strike with the Brit, Curtis has solid striking, its just not spectacular like Aspinall’s. Though this really might as well be for the undisputed title, it is just for interim gold. However, just like when he fought Sergei, this interim title fight is a much harder fight for Aspinall than either Gane was or Stipe will be for Jon Jones in his undisputed heavyweight title fights.
