“Not looking good for the Brit” - Tom Aspinall calls Sergei Pavlovich “scariest guy in the UFC” ahead of short-notice fight, fans worried

Tom Aspinall is taking a major risk in taking on Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 295 on November 11. He understands the perils of accepting the fight and has no qualms about admitting it. MMA fans are equally worried about him as well, especially because of the lack of preparation.

In a recent interview with MMA journalist Oscar Willis, Tom Aspinall narrated the story of how the fight came together. He explained:

“I know a sh**load of people at the top that turned down Sergei Pavlovich and I’m out here taking him on two weeks’ notice. No questioned asked, that’s the UFC. They asked me at 4:00 AM with no training camp and I’m like, ‘yeah, no problem!’ Didn’t ask about the contract, didn’t ask about the money, nothing… I just said yes. There’s not a lot of people that are doing that.”

Aspinall added:

“I’ll fight this scariest guy in the UFC who no one else wants to fight. He’s knocking everyone out. I’ll do that, no problem. I think I should be getting some goddamn credit for it.”

See the clip from Aspinall's interview below:

Although Tom Aspinall is a well-rounded fighter with a massive advantage in the grappling department, Sergei Pavlovich possesses devastating power in his hands. This is the main reason that has MMA fans worried about Aspinall’s chances in the fight.

Here are some fan comments stating their concerns:

Fan reactions to Aspinall interview

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How did Tom Aspinall vs Sergei Pavlovich come to fruition?

UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones was slated to attempt the first defence of his title against former two-time title holder Stipe Miocic in the UFC 295 main event. The fight had huge implications as the winner would go down as the greatest fighter in the UFC’s upper weight classes. However, Jones had to pull out of the fight due to a pec tear sustained while training.

Sergei Pavlovich, who was the back-up fighter for the main event remained on the card while Miocic was replaced by Tom Aspinall. At the moment, reasons for Miocic’s removal from the card are unknown.

The vacant light heavyweight title fight between Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka has been promoted to the main event slot at UFC 295. Meanwhile, Aspinall and Pavlovich will contest for the interim UFC heavyweight title in the co-main event.

Sergei Pavlovich is riding a six-fight knockout streak since losing to Alistair Overeem in his UFC debut all the way back in November 2018. Tom Aspinall returned to the octagon with a first-round TKO win over Marcin Tybura this past July. He was on the sidelines since suffering a knee injury in his fight against Curtis Blaydes in July 2022.