Tom Aspinall

Thomas Paul Aspinall (born 11 April 1993) is an English professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the current UFC Heavyweight Champion. As of 12 May 2026, he is #6 in the UFC men's pound-for-pound rankings. Aspinall is known for his finishing ability, having finished six of his eight UFC wins by the halfway point of the first round.

Background Thomas Paul Aspinall was born on 11 April 1993 in Salford, in the Greater Manchester ceremonial county of North West England. He followed his father's footsteps by beginning to train martial arts when he was seven years old at the Leigh Self Defence Studio in Leigh. After being trained in catch wrestling and boxing, Aspinall transitioned to jiu-jitsu. After his father became the jiu-jitsu instructor of Team Kaobon, Aspinall grew interested in mixed martial arts and transitioned into the sport.

Mixed martial arts career Early career At age 18, Aspinall had his first amateur fight. He posted a record of nine wins and no losses as an amateur. All but one of his wins came via knockout or submission. He made his professional debut at MMA Versus UK and later fought at BAMMA, where he amassed a record of 4 wins and 2 losses. He has also fought at Full Contact Contender in between. However, Pessoa withdrew from the bout citing an injury and was replaced by Jake Collier, but the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Subsequently, the pairing was left intact and took place on July 25 2020, at UFC on ESPN 14. He won the fight via technical knockout in round one. This win earned him the Performance of the Night award.

Aspinall's second UFC appearance was expected to be against Serghei Spivac at UFC Fight Night: Moraes vs. Sandhagen on October 11 2020. However, Spivak withdrew from the bout for undisclosed reasons and he was replaced by promotional newcomer Alan Baudot. Aspinall won the fight via first-round technical knockout.

Aspinall next faced Andrei Arlovski at UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Lewis on 20 February 2021. He won the fight via a submission in round two. This win earned him the Performance of the Night award.

Aspinall was expected to face Sergei Pavlovich on 4 September 2021, at UFC Fight Night 191. However, Pavlovich was removed from the card in late-August due to alleged visa issues which restricted his ability to travel and was replaced by Serghei Spivac. Aspinall won the fight via technical knockout in round one. The win earned Aspinall his third Performance of the Night bonus award.

Aspinall was scheduled to face Shamil Abdurakhimov on 19 March 2022, at UFC Fight Night 204. However, on 21 January 2022, it was announced that Aspinall would instead face Alexander Volkov. Aspinall won the fight via straight armbar submission in round one. With this win, he received the Performance of the Night award.

Aspinall faced Curtis Blaydes on 23 July 2022, at UFC Fight Night 208. He lost the fight by technical knockout 15 seconds into the first round after being rendered unable to continue due to a knee injury.

After a year off due to his injury, Aspinall returned to face Marcin Tybura on 22 July 2023, at UFC Fight Night 224. He won the fight via TKO just over a minute into the first round. With this win, he received his fifth Performance of the Night bonus award.

UFC Heavyweight Champion On two weeks' notice, Aspinall faced Sergei Pavlovich for the Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship on 11 November 2023, at UFC 295 due to Jon Jones becoming injured and his fight against Stipe Miocic being cancelled. He won by first-round knockout in a little over a minute and the victory earned him his sixth Performance of the Night award.

Aspinall defended his interim title against Curtis Blaydes in a rematch on 27 July 2024 at UFC 304. He won the fight by knockout one minute into the first round. This fight earned him a $100,000 Performance of the Night award.

Aspinall served as the backup fighter for the UFC Heavyweight Championship bout between then current champion Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic on 16 November 2024 at UFC 309.

At the post-fight press conference of UFC on ABC: Hill vs. Rountree Jr. on 21 June 2025, UFC CEO Dana White announced that UFC Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones (also former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion) had retired from mixed martial arts competition and that Aspinall was promoted as the new undisputed champion as a result.

Aspinall faced former interim champion Ciryl Gane on 25 October 2025 at UFC 321. During the first round, Gane poked Aspinall in both of his eyes, rendering Aspinall unable to continue. The fight was declared a no contest.

On 29 December, Aspinall announced he was moving forward with multiple eye surgeries, expected to be completed by mid-January, with no return timeline provided.

Fighting style Aspinall's fighting style is characterized by aggression, speed, and finishing ability. Aspinall holds the UFC record for shortest average fight time among all fighters, and has the most strikes landed per minute out of any heavyweight fighter. Across his professional career, Aspinall has never been to a decision, and only three of his fights have ever made it to a second round. All but one of Aspinall's professional wins has been by first-round finish. Combat sports analyst Jack Slack described Aspinall's speed as "almost unfathomable in heavyweight MMA." Slack has praised Aspinall's use of false entries to bait an opponent's reaction as well as his effective one-two, but criticized his lack of variety on the feet, reluctance to use his "terrific" body jab, and obvious tendency to hold his chin high.

Personal life Aspinall was born to parents Tracey and Andy and was raised in Atherton, Greater Manchester. His wife is of Polish descent. He has three sons, two of which are twins. Aspinall speaks minimal Polish and states an affinity to Poland due to his wife and children's Polish background.

Aspinall is a Manchester City supporter due to his son supporting the team. He also has expressed a dream to one day fight at Old Trafford. Aspinall has a YouTube channel.

In 2025, Aspinall became a brand ambassador, along with Alex Pereira and Johnny Walker, as part of the multi-year branding deal between the UFC and Spribe.

Championships and accomplishments Mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship UFC Heavyweight Champion (One time, Current) Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion (One time) Fourth most knockdowns per 15 minutes in UFC history (3.27) Third largest striking differential in UFC history (4.01) 2022: Ranked #3 Submission of the Year 2023: Ranked #6 Fighter of the Year, Ranked #8 Upset of the Year & Ranked #6 Knockout of the Year Sherdog 2023 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year Violent Money TV VMTV UK MMA Male Knockout of the Year 2023 VMTV UK MMA Fighter of the Year 2024 World MMA Awards 2024 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year 2024 Comeback of the Year MMA Fighting 2023 First Team MMA All-Star MMA Mania 2023 #3 Ranked Fighter of the Year

Mixed martial arts record NC

Ciryl Gane NC (eye poke) UFC 321

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates Win

Curtis Blaydes KO (punches) UFC 304

Manchester, England Win

Sergei Pavlovich KO (punches) UFC 295

New York City, New York, United States Win

Marcin Tybura TKO (elbow and punches) UFC Fight Night: Aspinall vs. Tybura

London, England Loss

Curtis Blaydes TKO (knee injury) UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Aspinall

London, England Win

Alexander Volkov Submission (straight armbar) UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs. Aspinall

London, England Win

Serghei Spivac TKO (elbow and punches) UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs. Till

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Andrei Arlovski Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Lewis

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Alan Baudot TKO (elbows and punches) UFC Fight Night: Moraes vs. Sandhagen

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates Win

Jake Collier TKO (knee and punches) UFC on ESPN: Whittaker vs. Till

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates Win

Mickael Ben Hamouda TKO (punches) Cage Warriors 107

Liverpool, England Win

Sofiane Boukichou TKO (leg injury) Cage Warriors 101

Liverpool, England Win

Kamil Bazelak KO (punch) Full Contact Contender 16

Bolton, England Loss

Łukasz Parobiec DQ (illegal downward elbow) BAMMA 25

Birmingham, England Win

Adrian Ruskac TKO (punches) Full Contact Contender 15

Bolton, England Loss

Stuart Austin Submission (heel hook) BAMMA 21

Birmingham, England Win

Satisch Jhamai TKO (punches) BAMMA 19

Blackpool, England Win

Ricky King Submission (heel hook) BAMMA 18

Wolverhampton, England Win

Michał Piszczek TKO (submission to punches) MMA Versus UK: Empire Rises

Manchester, England

Amateur mixed martial arts record (incomplete) Win

Liam Cawley Submission (arm-triangle choke) Shinobi War 2

Deeside Leisure Centre, Queensferry, Clwyd, Wales Win

Tom Bankevic KO (punch) Full Contact Contender 9

Reebok Stadium Premier Suite, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England Win

Ryan Hennessey KO (punches) OMMAC 20

Liverpool Olympia, Liverpool, Merseyside, England Win

Shawn Kenny Decision (unanimous) OMMAC 18

Liverpool Olympia, Liverpool, Merseyside, England Win

Kristan Bircher Submission (arm triangle choke) OMMAC 16

Liverpool Olympia, Liverpool, Merseyside, England Win

Alan Harper Submission (brabo choke) Fight-Stars 3 May 23, 2010

Oceana, Wolverhampton, England Professional boxing record

Pay-per-view bouts