Aspinall vs. Blaydes: A UFC London Preview

The UFC returned to the British Isles back in March, visiting for the first time since early 2019. The card, Aspinall vs. Volkov, is widely regarded as one of the most enthralling so far this year, with multiple native fighters emerging victorious on home soil. Now, the UFC return once more hoping to bring another groundbreaking night of MMA to UK shores. 

Thanks to its predecessor, this card is just as if not even more highly anticipated. European fans have been treated to two weeks of hospitable timings, rather than the average process of sticking toothpicks between the eyelids. With several names returning, and stronger opponents making their way across the Atlantic, UFC London is primed to be another blockbuster.

Preliminary Card

• Cláudio Silva vs. Nicolas Dalby (Welterweight)
• Mandy Böhm vs. Victoria Leonardo (Women’s Flyweight)
• Jai Herbert vs. Kyle Nelson (Lightweight)
• Muhammad Mokaev vs. Charles Johnson (Flyweight)
• Makwan Amirkhani vs. Jonathan Pearce (Featherweight)
• Nathaniel Wood vs. Charles Rosa (Featherweight)
• Marc Diakiese vs. Damir Hadžović (Lightweight)
• Mason Jones vs. Ludovít Klein (Lightweight)

(Subject to change)

MMA fans, especially those residing in the UK, should certainly be tuning in to watch Muhammad Mokaev. The 21-year-old is an incredibly exciting prospect, winning his promotion debut against Cody Durden via guillotine choke at the previous London event. ‘The Punisher’, however, will need to be wary of his opponent Charles Johnson, an aggressive striker who is yet to be finished in his pro career. This will act as the American’s first UFC fight; expect to see Mokaev attempt to hit an early takedown.

Mokaev is 126lbs but needed the hoop #UFCLondon pic.twitter.com/FCNPQnxowu

— Chisanga Malata (@Chisanga_Malata) July 22, 2022

Jones vs. Klein is another intriguing preliminary matchup. The former is a 27-year-old Welsh striker who has provided enthrallment for viewers in all three of his promotion bouts. Despite a mixed bag of results (one win, one loss and one no-contest), Jones is the betting favourite by far against Klein, a Slovakian all-rounder who utilises big swings to terrify his opponents. Just two of ‘Mr. Highlight’s’ wins have gone the distance, making many believe this will be a proper slog of a contest to round out the prelims.

Main Card

Paul Craig (16-4-1) vs. Volkan Oezdemir (17-6-0) – Men’s Light Heavyweight: 

Craig is a fighter whose stock has certainly risen in recent years, no-more so than after the previous London card where he submitted Nikita Krylov in the first round. The Scotsman has had just one fight in his pro career go the distance (a draw against Maurício Rua back in 2019), showcasing why he is such an entertaining athlete to watch. ‘Bearjew’ comes into the bout on a four-fight winning streak, and is known for excelling on his back in guard.

Oezdemir, on the other hand, has struggled for form in recent years. In fact the 32-year-old hasn’t achieved victory since 2019. ‘No Time’ however remains a constant threat in the light heavyweight division, and is ranked just one place below his octagon counterpart in #9. Oezdemir’s game is boxing dominant, and he doesn’t mind waiting in long periods for the counter. He’ll need to show great takedown defence tonight and keep the bout on feet.

Molly McCann (12-4-0) vs. Hannah Goldy (6-2-0) – Women’s Flyweight:

Most UFC fans will be well aware of Molly ‘Meatball‘ McCann, not only for being good friends with training partner Paddy Pimblett, but also for her spectacular spinning elbow finish of Luana Carolina four months ago. The 32-year-old relies heavily on a boxing approach with interchanging levels, while swarming her opponents with a high striking output.

Goldy has been given a chance on the big stage after achieving her first promotion win in September last year. The American got signed by Dana White after beating Kali Robbins via decision on the Contender Series, but proceeded to struggle in her next two fights. ‘24K‘ is a powerful fighter on her feet, albeit slightly slower than her upcoming opponent. On the ground, Goldy has a solid wrestling game and likes slamming fighters to the canvas.

Nikita Krylov (27-9-0) vs. Alexander Gustafsson (18-7-0): Light Heavyweight

It is slightly confusing that Krylov should lose to Paul Craig on the previous London card, yet appear further up the order on the return. The Ukranian is a sport veteran, however, and his dedication to the UFC since 2013 probably deserves higher bout placements. He’s also a great thrill supplier – all but one of “The Miner’s” wins have ended in some sort of finish. His opponent will have to be ready for all angles – Krylov will be looking for the finish.

For Gustafsson, the days of taking on the world’s best are all but over. Throughout the Swede’s 13 years within the promotion, he’s fought the likes of Jon Jones, Daniel Cormier, Anthony Johnson and Jan Błachowicz, remaining competitive with the majority of them. UFC London marks Gustafsson’s comeback after two years out, and many fans will be waiting with intrigue as to how much ‘The Mauler‘ has left in the tank.

Paddy Pimblett (18-3-0) vs. Jordan Leavitt (10-1-0): Lightweight

Paddy ‘The Baddy‘ Pimblett’s hype train is one that has ran with full steam since his promotion debut last year. The Scouser is a former Cage Warriors featherweight champion, and since arriving in the UFC has earned two first round finishes. Although he’s primarily a wrestler, Pimblett does not mind exchanging on his feet at all. He outputs just over 6 significant strikes landed per minute (SLpM) with an accuracy of 57%, although he often eats a few massive shots from his opponents too, which have tended to at least temporarily drop him.

"My nan is dead, and she'd finish him": Paddy Pimblett (@theufcbaddy) went *OFF* on Jordan Leavitt at #UFCLondon media day.

Full interview: https://t.co/6qZ8K9B5Nd pic.twitter.com/tpxRjlVJoz

— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) July 20, 2022

The Baddy will certainly be facing his toughest opponent tonight. Jordan Leavitt became well-known in the MMA community for his post-fight celebration, and has lost just one of his 11 professional fights. The 27-year-old was victorious last time out in a close matchup with Trey Ogden, winning via split decision, and he’ll definitely be fighting in London with the majority of The O2 against him. Leavitt is predominantly a grappler, but with a takedown accuracy of just 26%, we may see Pimblett choose to keep this one standing.

Jack Hermansson (22-7-0) vs. Chris Curtis (29-8-0): Middleweight

Darren Till was originally meant to be taking on Jack Hermansson for the co-main event, however in a depressing but probably expected turn of events for UK MMA fans, the 29-year-old pulled out due to an undisclosed injury.

Chris Curtis was named as his replacement just over a fortnight ago, who is certainly no downgrade when looking at recent form. ‘Action Man‘ has won all three of his UFC fights, his last one coming via decision against the Brazilian Rodolfo Vieira. A stand-up artist, Curtis’ strikes contain damaging power which he mixes with high volume. The American averages 7.23 SLpM with 65% accuracy, levels which will be of great concern to any opponent he faces.

Something that will also worry Hermansson will be Curtis’ takedown defence: 100% (within the UFC). Taking into consideration that all of the Norwegian’s finishes have come via submission or ground and pound, he may begin to struggle very quickly if his takedown attempts emerge fruitless. ‘The Joker‘ is, however, a former Cage Warriors middleweight champion, and he’s much more experienced in the UFC than his opponent. It wasn’t too long ago people were discussing how he’d fare in a title shot with Israel Adesanya. If he can hit the takedown early on, Curtis may be in for a long three rounds.

Curtis Blaydes (16-3-0 (1NC)) vs. Tom Aspinall (12-2-0): Heavyweight

The winner of this main event could well be in with a chance of fighting either the number one ranked contender in Cyril Gane, or even a title shot against Francis Ngannou.

Curtis Blaydes has been a top heavyweight talent for a number of years now, often remaining somewhat underappreciated, yet has never earnt himself a title shot. ‘Razor‘ comes into the bout off the back two wins, the last being a second round knockout over Chris Daukaus via a vicious right straight. The 31-year-old is a dominant wrestler with a takedown average of 6.06 (every 15 minutes), often seeking ground and pound rather than submissions. Blaydes’ striking was often criticised upon his entry to the UFC, yet over the last few years this aspect of his game has improved tremendously, which in turn has added more variety to his performances.

In his way, however, is the highly regarded Tom Aspinall, an Englishman with sublime technical ability in most MMA aspects. All twelve of his wins have come via a finish of some kind, aided by both his high strike volume (7.33 SLpM with an accuracy of 65%) and dangerous submission game. The latest of these came at the last London event, submitting Alexander Volkov in the first round via armbar. Despite his opponent’s strong grappling numbers, the #6 ranked fighter is yet to be taken down in the UFC (defence of 100%) while avergaing 4.07 takedowns of his own (per 15 minutes). Blaydes will certainly be the toughest wrestler Aspinall has faced so far, and you would think he’ll need the thousands of crowd members right behind him to help get the job done.

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