The UFC 295 card has now changed in a big way due to Jon Jones’ tendon injury. Now instead of Jones vs. Miocic, it will be an interim championship match between future prospects Tom Aspinall and Sergei Pavlovich. While discussing this match on The MMA Hour, Aspinall recalls a beautiful incident from the past regarding Tyson Fury.
Aspinall talks about the time when he was around 21/22 years old and used to spar with ‘The Gypsy King’. “I was really struggling for money at that time“, said Tom recalling his financial struggles . Furthermore, he was offered a tough fight but he wasn’t getting paid anything to take that fight. “They literally wanted me to fight for free on the show and the guy who I was fighting was quite good,” said Aspinall.
However, Tyson Fury who was doing well for himself around that time offered to pay him for taking that fight. “I remember Tyson just being like, I’ll pay you don’t worry about it, if you take the fight I’ll pay you for it,” said the no.4 ranked UFC heavyweight.
Tyson Fury and Tom Aspinall have a long-standing relationship
‘The Gypsy King’ and Tom Aspinall have known each other for over 10 years. Furthermore, Aspinall was a training partner of Fury when he was in his early 20s. He has always credited Tyson Fury for helping him develop not only his skills but his attitude towards fighting,
“I think Tyson Fury’s helped me the most mentally,” said Tom Aspinall. Furthermore, Tom believes that he would not be where he is without the help of ‘The Gypsy King’. He also praised the whole Fury family for providing him with a positive outlook towards fighting.
On the other hand, Tyson Fury has always been supportive of his former sparring partner. In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, he said that Aspinall has the capability of winning the UFC heavyweight championship. Furthermore, Tyson claimed that Tom could have been a championship-level pro boxer if he had decided to that route.
When Tyson Fury was asked if his friend could defeat the current UFC heavyweight champion, Jon Jones, he had an interesting response. “If anyone can beat Jon Jones, it’ll be Tom Aspinall. Nobody else,” said Fury.
Tyson Fury predicts Tom Aspinall vs. Sergei Pavlovich
When Ariel Helwani asked Tyson Fury to drop a message for Tom Aspinall regarding his upcoming fight, he said that it was a massive opportunity for Tom as he has been training for a long time for such an opportunity. Furthermore, he praised both fighters for taking the fight on short notice.
“The other guy (Pavlovich) is a good fighter but I’ve always said since Tom started in the UFC that he’s capable of winning the heavyweight championship,” said Fury. Furthermore, he believes that it is Tom’s chance to seize this opportunity with both hands.
He believes that “Immortality awaits” for his friend when he captures the interim title. Do you agree with Tyson Fury? Let us know in the comments below.