Fight Report

To everyone who wrote me off, take a look at where I am now Tom Aspinall

Tom Aspinall

February 16, 2021

To everyone who wrote me off, take a look at where I am now

As a fighter there is nothing quite like being written off.

Being told you’re done. Finished in this business. And not by fans and so-called experts, but doctors too.

For nearly three years from 2016 to 2019 I didn’t step foot in a cage – but there was never a hesitation in my mind that this was the end of this journey for me.

A number of events reinforced that I would come back stronger.

During the time I was away from MMA a lot of things happened to me. Firstly I became a dad, which is a massive thing.

I came back from a massive injury that I was written-off from – the comeback from that was both physical and mental. I snapped my biceps tendon and there were a lot of people who questioned whether I would come back close to the level I was – or even if I would come back at all.

I knew I could do it.

At that time I was boxing and was around Tyson Fury every day. Obviously being in that environment you are going to improve as a boxer, but mentally being around him is something else. Seeing how a world champion operates on a day to day basis was huge for my development.

I was about 22 or 23 at the time and going through a lot of changes, he made me start to realise what my approach to sport should really be like.

From then on I was a different fighter.

Through ups and downs, my dad has been the one constant in my whole career

Fighting has always been in my life. It is something my dad was into so I was always going to the gym with him – even well before I started training myself, I would go there just to be with him.

I was a natural progression – I never had one of those light bulb moments deciding this was the thing for me, I just started training on and off as a teenager, but then when I got older the obvious thing for me to do was fight.

Dad has been the most important part of me. He believed in me before I could even believe in myself – he’s been the most important man in my whole journey. One day I am going to get a belt and I am just going to give it to him – that’s enough for me then. I am happy if that can happen.

I wouldn’t be doing any of this if it wasn’t for my dad, that’s for sure. He is much more than my dad, he’s my friend and so much of who I am today comes from him.

Family is everything for me, and I am so thankful for that

I realise how lucky I am with family life. It’s an amazing feeling to know that no matter what happens in a fight you go home to the love of your kids and wife – and so many other people on top of that. If I were to turn round tomorrow and say I wanted to stop fighting because it doesn’t make me happy, and that I was going to go and be a bin-man they would be happy for me. So many sports stars have people around them because they are successful, but I have people around me because they love me and that is really nice.

On the back of a couple of wins in the UFC there were a few more people trying to pay attention to me – but they are not going to get much attention from me. I do struggle with it to be honest – they want me now, but if I was knocked out in my next fight they would be nowhere to be seen. I know who has been there for me when things have been tough and they are the people who will remain part of me.

The other side of my family, is my team

I wouldn’t be here now if it wasn’t for my team. They are hugely important. It is a really tough job for them with a lot of work involved, but we are all on the same page and push for the same thing – a UFC title, but we won’t be in a rush for it.

We do work hard. I think that if you are training to fight someone, then you have to fight in the gym as well, otherwise what are you doing?

The UFC has to be the goal for a fighter, just getting there can’t be enough

To be honest we all expected the UFC call. We knew I was going to get there. We were happy to get the call but it was never something we went mad about. It is life-changing, especially with the amount of money involved, but I don’t see why you would do this sport unless you were a contender in the UFC – so getting the call from them was always a natural progression for me.

I fought in Cage Warriors in October 2019 and then I got signed by the UFC straight after with the view to fight early 2020. I was given the date in March, my opponent changed a couple of times, and then because of the coronavirus outbreak it got cancelled about five days before which was a pain in the arse. Everyone was in the same boat so there wasn’t much getting pissed off would have done. I was massively disappointed but it was out of my hands.

2020 was shit for so many people, but for me it was the best year of my life. I hate to see what has happened to people from a health perspective, and all those who have lost their jobs and it just makes me so grateful that I can make a good living out of doing what I enjoy – I am so lucky.

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Fight Island in Abu Dhabi was great. My first time there was my first UFC fight and everything was brand new, second time I knew what to expect so I was a bit more chilled.

Having a couple of teammates on that first card was great because we went over there as a team and it felt like something really special. For the second fight only three of us went in total so it was a bit boring. The setup they have there is unbelievable – you couldn’t want for more. It is weird being in the hotel all the time, and it is a bit like having a 10-day fight day, you are just there waiting to fight because that’s all you can focus on. I am just lucky to be able to work at this time, especially on a world stage and get paid very well for it.

The biggest disappointment for me around my UFC debut was there were so many people who I wanted to be there and they couldn’t. When I was originally supposed to fight in London, I had about 500 people coming to watch me. Perhaps it worked out best for me in the end though. By the time fans will be allowed back I will have had a few fights and be really comfortable fighting in the UFC.

The enigma that is Darren Till

Me and Till have been friends for about ten years. Ever since we have started out in MMA we have been training together. I feel like we learn a lot from each other. We have sparred together so many rounds we even said recently it is almost pointless us sparring together because we each know what the other will do before they even do it.

He is a funny guy, he’s just a nice person to have around. I think he can be a bit of an acquired taste for some people, but I get him and he cracks me up. He brings good energy to the gym a lot of the time which is great.

I remember him getting a wheel clamp, no idea where he got it from and he clamped the wheel on Mike Grundy’s car. He had the keys for it, locked it up and said he was the guy who owns the car park to the gym premises. He told Mike that he had parked in a disabled space, so Mike’s then running round trying to find this guy and get the clamp off his car – but it was obviously Till all along, everyone was cracking up, even Grundy in the end!

From chippy teas to eating clean – everything is now focused on fights and a big 2021

I see myself as a really normal person – I love going out for a drink or something to eat, but now I’m in the UFC I am certainly looking after myself a lot more. I will still always enjoy myself but things have changed.

My diet is so much better. Ever since I have been in the UFC I have been eating clean – before that I would be eating shit all the time basically – I would have three or four cheat meals a week even when I was in training camp.

I still have a drink but it depends how close to a fight you are. I am trying to get my body fat right down, so the diet is the main thing. Something that makes a massive difference to all this is when you are getting paid properly.

Now everything goes into making me the best I can be. I feel so much better. It is all about consistency and when you are eating right for about a month you feel completely different – training is better, recovery is better, you feel like a different person

All this is putting me on the right track for a big 2021. I want to be fighting some bigger names and winning – I don’t want anything spectacular just experience. I am hoping for three fights, which is tough for a heavyweight. Big guys need to spar with big guys, and a lot of heavyweights get injured so if you can get three fights in you are pretty lucky but that’s what I want this year. Another step taken on the way to my ultimate goal of handing that title to my dad.

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