MMAOB staff writer Adam Martin takes a deeper look at the main event of UFC London, a five-round heavyweight bout between Alexander Volkov and Tom Aspinall. The event takes place on Saturday, March 19 at the O2 Arena in London, England.
Alexander Volkov (-130)
Volkov (34-9) is the No. 6 ranked heavyweight in the UFC. The 33-year-old Russian has been in the UFC since 2016 and he has gone 8-3 since then with wins over the likes of Alistair Overeem, Greg Hardy, and Fabricio Werdum. Volkov has always been one of the top strikers in the heavyweight division. He is blessed with an incredible frame — long and tall with a huge reach — and he’s made a career out of hurting his opponents with his strikes and putting them away. A former Bellator heavyweight champ, Volkov has overall performed really well in the Octagon. If he can go out there and beat an up-and-coming contender like Aspinall, it would be huge for Volkov’s title hopes.
Tom Aspinall (+110)
Aspinall (11-2) is the No. 11 ranked heavyweight in the UFC. The 28-year-old Brit joined the UFC in 2020 and so far he is a perfect 4-0 in the Octagon with big wins over the likes of Andrei Arlovski and Serghei Spivac. Aspinall is a very well-rounded heavyweight which makes him truly unique and special. Not only does he have big knockout power on the feet, but he can also shoot for a blast double, take his opponent’s back, and choke them out. He looks to be the real deal in the UFC heavyweight division, and now the matchmakers are giving him a major step up against Volkov. It will likely be the hardest fight of Aspinall’s career, but if he wins, it would push him close to the top-5.
Fight Breakdown: This is certainly not an easy fight to call, and the fact the fight is a Pick ’em right now is proof of that. That being said, someone is going to win the fight, so we have to really dig deep and look into this matchup. While it’s a pretty difficult fight to predict, I do think ultimately Aspinall is the pick here. He looks like a special talent and has performed amazing so far in the UFC, so there’s no reason to jump off the Aspinall train now. Although Volkov is certainly a step up in competition from the last few guys that Aspinall has fought, I do think that fighting the likes of Serghei Spivac and Andrei Arlovski has prepared Aspinall well for this moment. Volkov is a very solid heavyweight but he can be hurt to the head and Aspinall packs a big punch. Since Aspinall matches up well with Volkov in terms of height and reach, I don’t think we are going to see a big size advantage for Volkov as he has in many of his fights. Ultimately, this fight comes down to whether or not Aspinall can finish Volkov in the first few rounds. Since it’s a five-round fight, if the fight goes into the championship rounds, you’d have to favor Volkov if the fight goes that far. But I feel like Aspinall can do something really special this weekend, and I see him going out there and stopping Volkov.
Prediction: Tom Aspinall
