UFC 304: Tom Aspinall vs. Curtis Blaydes Fight Preview

For the first time in 11 years, an interim title will be defended in the UFC when Tom Aspinall puts his temporary belt on the line at UFC 304 against Curtis Blaydes.

Though Jon Jones is still listed as the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion, many consider Aspinall to be the best heavyweight in the world. As the owner of the current shortest average fight time in UFC history, Aspinall has mostly run through the 265-pound division since making his debut in 2020 but has one loss in the Octagon to Blaydes when he tore his MCL 15 seconds into their fight in 2022.

Tom Aspinall vs. Curtis Blaydes Tale of the Tape

Tom Aspinall vs. Curtis Blaydes Fight Statistics

View the statistics for each fighter as they appear on UFC Stats ahead of their meeting at UFC Vegas 94:

Tom Aspinall’s Last Fight

UFC 295 was scheduled to be headlined by Jon Jones defending his belt against former champion Stipe Miocic but a pectoral injury to the champion prevented him from competing on the night. Instead, the UFC called Aspinall to step in on short notice to fight for the interim title on two weeks’ notice against original backup fighter Sergei Pavlovich.

The fight between Aspinall and Pavlovich was a fantasy matchup fans salivated over and lived up to the hype when it finally happened. As one would expect in a fight between two fighters with the shortest average fight times in UFC history, the bout lasted just one minute before Aspinall rocked and knocked down Pavlovich before his ground-and-pound put the Russian unconscious.

With the win, Aspinall became the second heavyweight to win an interim championship in as many years with Ciryl Gane doing so at UFC 265 with a win over Derrick Lewis.

Curtis Blaydes’ Last Fight

It will not be for undisputed gold but Blaydes will finally receive a title shot at UFC 304 after years of dominating the heavyweight division. While is he often recognized as the best wrestler the weight class has ever seen, Blaydes was getting thrown around by Jailton Almeida in his last fight at UFC 299 before turning the tables early in the second round.

After a disastrous opening frame, Blaydes caught Almeida shooting for another takedown at the beginning of the second round before unloading on several consecutive short hammer fists to the side of the head. The shots eventually caused Almeida to fold over with the fight being stopped seconds later. ‘Razor’ became the first person to defeat Almeida in the UFC, ending his 15-fight win streak that spanned nearly five years.

Key Statistics

With a large sample size in the UFC, fans tend to know what to expect from Blaydes at this point in his career, though Aspinall remains the bigger wildcard. The Brit has won nearly 80 percent of his fights by knockout and has entered a second round just once in the UFC but owns a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt to back up his striking skills while often being credited as one of the smartest fighters in the division.

Blaydes, however, is a purebred wrestler who owns knockout power like most heavyweights but has shown a suffocating ability from the top position. When he has landed a takedown in the UFC, Blaydes is officially 8-1 and just 5-3 when he has not. Aspinall has never been taken down in the UFC but has never fought a wrestler like Blaydes and has only fought for a combined 17:21 in the Octagon. If there is one thing Aspinall has not dealt with yet in his career, it is being put on his back by a high-level wrestler.

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