UFC 295 LIVE results: Aspinall knocks out Pavlovich before Pereira stops Prochazka
Re-live updates after the vacant light-heavyweight title and interim heavyweight belt were contested at Madison Square Garden
Tom Aspinall claimed the interim UFC heavyweight title on Saturday night, knocking out Sergei Pavlovich in the first round in New York City.
The main event of UFC 295 was due to see Jon Jones defend the heavyweight title against divisional great Stipe Miocic, but that bout was cancelled on two weeks’ notice after Jones suffered an injury in training. With Jones, 36, set to face eight months on the sidelines, the UFC pitted Aspinall against Pavlovich to crown an interim champion, and it was the Briton who triumphed at Madison Square Garden.
Aspinall, who admitted to being “scared” ahead of his fight with the Russian, caught Pavlovich with two clean right hands in the first round, wobbling him with the first and dropping him with the second. The Wigan fighter, 30, followed up with a trio of hammer fists to the downed Pavlovich, sealing the knockout to become the third British champion in UFC history.
Aspinall vs Pavlovich in fact served as the co-main event of UFC 295, while the original co-main event was elevated and saw Alex Pereira beat Jiri Prochazka for the vacant light-heavyweight title.
Pereira, a former middleweight champion, became the ninth two-weight champion in UFC history by securing a TKO in Round 2. The Brazilian dropped his Czech opponent with a left hook before unleashing a series of elbows, before referee Marc Goddard stepped in.
Re-live updates and results from the UFC 295 main card and prelims, below.
UFC 295 LIVE: Report as Aspinall and Pereira claim gold
Read our full report from UFC 295, right here:
Tom Aspinall becomes Britain’s third UFC champion with first-round KO of Pavlovich
Aspinall won the interim heavyweight title on two weeks’ notice, after champion Jon Jones suffered an injury
Should Tom Aspinall be the favourite against Jon Jones?
When you’ve knocked out the “scariest man in the UFC”, what is there left to fear? Some may offer ‘nothing’ as a valid answer. Some may say ‘Jon Jones’, arguably the greatest UFC fighter of all time. Either way, Tom Aspinall, who was so honest about being scared ahead of UFC 295, believes his fear is his “superpower”. So, maybe fear will inspire Aspinall to a career-defining victory over Jones, or maybe the Briton will realise he doesn’t need to fear the icon at all.
Days before UFC 295 – days before his date with destiny at combat sports’ Mecca, Madison Square Garden – Aspinall had this to say of his clash with Sergei Pavlovich: “I’m pretty scared. He’s a scary, intimidating guy.” But? “I do my best work scared. Fear is something I have a really good relationship with. It gives me a superpower – the more scared I am, the better I do in the fight.”
And with the interim heavyweight title on the line, and just two weeks’ preparation behind him, Aspinall could not have done better than he did on Saturday. Even when the Wigan fighter was caught clean with a left hook in the opening moments of the co-main event, he stayed calm. Perhaps surviving that shot meant Aspinall’s fear dissipated, or perhaps being tagged like that only augmented his fear. The beauty is that, for Aspinall, either outcome keeps him dangerous, and Pavlovich would find out just how dangerous in the seconds that followed.
Comment piece below:
Should Tom Aspinall be the favourite against Jon Jones?
The Briton starched Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 295 to win the interim heavyweight title, lining him up for a showdown with arguably the greatest of all time
Jiri Prochazka reacts to controversial stoppage in loss to Alex Pereira
Jiri Prochazka has dismissed suggestions that his fight with Alex Pereira was stopped prematurely at UFC 295, after the Czech suffered a second-round loss in their title fight.
Pereira, a former middleweight champion, won the vacant light-heavyweight belt with a TKO against Prochazka on Saturday (11 November), but some fans and pundits argued that referee Marc Goddard stepped in too soon.
Pereira, 36, dropped Prochazka, 31, with a left hook before landing a series of elbows as Prochazka clung to the Brazilian’s legs. The Czech then fell to his back, with Pereira dropping straight into mount. It was at that moment that Goddard waved off the fight, before Prochazka quickly stood up.
As a result, the commentary team claimed that the bout had ended too soon, with many fans and fighters expressing the same sentiment on social media. Yet Prochazka dismissed the suggestion in his post-fight interview, and he has doubled down in his first statement since the loss.
Here’s what he had to say:
UFC 295 star reacts to controversial stoppage
Pereira scored a second-round TKO against Prochazka to win the light-heavyweight title, but some fans and pundits argued the referee stepped in too soon
Tom Aspinall ‘wants to fight Jon Jones’ next after claiming UFC interim title
Tom Aspinall wants to fight UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones next after claiming the interim title with his first-round victory against Sergei Pavlovich on Saturday night.
The main event of UFC 295 was due to see Jones defend his heavyweight belt against divisional great Stipe Miocic, but that bout was cancelled on two weeks’ notice after Jones suffered an injury in training.
With Jones, 36, set to face eight months on the sidelines, the UFC pitted Aspinall against Pavlovich to crown an interim champion, and it was the Briton who triumphed at Madison Square Garden to become the third British champion in UFC history.
Aspinall, who admitted to being “scared” ahead of his fight with the Russian, caught Pavlovich with two clean right hands in the first round, wobbling him with the first and dropping him with the second.
And the Wigan fighter, 30, who could be elevated to regular champion in Jones’s absence, said he now wants the “dream fight” against the American great.
Tom Aspinall ‘wants to fight Jon Jones’ next after claiming UFC interim title
Aspinall won the interim title after Jones was unable to defend his heavyweight belt
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