"It was a mismatch in his favor"- Tom Aspinall gives his take on what it was like facing Alexander Volkov

Tom Aspinall has opened up about what it was like facing Alexander Volkov. UK heavyweight Tom Aspinall made his UFC debuted in 2020 and swiftly worked his way up the heavyweight ranks.

Aspinall competed in his very first UFC main event matchup earlier this month, facing former Bellator heavyweight champion Alexander Volkov at the O2 Arena in London, England. The fight witnessed Aspinall dominantly defeat the veteran Volkov via first-round submission.

In an interview with CBS Sports' Shakiel Mahjouri, Aspinall discussed his fight against Volkov, which was a significant step-up in competition for him. When asked whether he expected the fight to play out as easily as it did, Aspinall stated:

“No, I mean, let’s be honest. It was a mismatch in his favor. And I was completely aware of that. Like, if you brought someone who’s never seen the sport before to watch that fight, you say, ‘Right, who’s this guy (Volkov)? He’s a former Bellator champion. He’s a 45-fight veteran. He’s got double the amount of knockouts as that other guy (Aspinall) has got fights. He’s six-foot-nine. He’s fought multiple main events. Like, the list just goes on and on and on. He’s fought all kinds of champions.’”

“'And, oh, who’s the other guy? He’s had like, 12 fights. And it’s his first-time main event. He’s never fought in front of a crowd before.’ Like, it’s a ridiculous mismatch on his part.”

Additionally, Aspinall suggested that despite going up against a highly-accomplished opponent like Alexander Volkov, he was confident that he’d win. That said, Aspinall expected that although he’d win, he’d likely be left with a couple of broken bones and a stitched-up face. The 28-year-old added that thankfully, he didn’t take much damage and is still fresh.

Watch Tom Aspinall’s conversation with Shakiel Mahjouri in the video below:

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Michael Bisping believes Tom Aspinall could dethrone Francis Ngannou to win UFC heavyweight gold

In a recent edition of his Believe You Me podcast, UK MMA legend Michael Bisping weighed in on a potential fight between the No. 6-ranked UFC heavyweight Tom Aspinall and reigning UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou.

The former UFC middleweight champion opined that Tom Aspinall is capable of dethroning Francis Ngannou and capturing the UFC heavyweight title. Bisping said:

"I'm not saying right here, right now, that (Aspinall) beats Francis Ngannou. I'm saying there's a really good f***ing chance he beats Francis Ngannou. I mean, if it stays on the feet and Ngannou, we know. I don't need to finish the sentence. I don't even need to finish that he is extremely dangerous. But the well-roundedness of him I think just sets him apart from everyone else."