Headliner Tom Aspinall’s UFC London ended in agony on Saturday night when he suffered a freak knee injury 15 seconds into his heavyweight clash against Curtis Blaydes, as Paddy Pimblett stole the show with another emphatic victory and a viral post-fight plea.
Aspinall, topping the bill at the O2 Arena for a second time in four months, badly injured his right knee as he stepped back following a powerful kick on his American opponent.
Something seemed to give as soon as the Englishman planted his foot, with the haulking heavyweight shrieking in pain and clutching his knee as he fell to the canvas. Referee Herb Dean quickly stopped the bout, with the official result a TKO for Blaydes.
Aspinall, the No 6-ranked contender, required significant medical attention inside the octagon. While not confirming the extent of the injury, he later labelled it a “freak accident”.
“I have no idea what happened,” Blaydes, the division's No 4-ranked challenger, told reporters after the event. “He landed the kick, I went to counter, he dropped. That’s all I know.
“I’m frustrated. No one wants to win like that. I get the win, I hold my ranking. I get the money, but without a highlight, did it even happen? Did the fight even happen?”
With the victory, Blaydes moved to 17-3 in professional mixed martial arts, while Aspinall is now 12-2. Saturday’s defeat represents the only loss in his six UFC appearances thus far.
Meanwhile, Pimblett stole the headlines on another sold-out night in the English capital, first for his submission win against American Jordan Leavitt and then for his in-octagon interview.
The Liverpool fighter, seeking a third victory since debuting in the promotion, submitted his rival with a rear-naked choke in the second round of their lightweight encounter.
Pimblett, who once more followed his teammate and close friend Molly McCann with a hugely popular victory, revealed to former UFC champion and colour commentator Michael Bisping that he had received awful news the previous morning.
Grabbing the mic, a clearly emotional Pimblett told the packed arena: "If you're feeling the weight of the world on your shoulders, please speak to someone. I woke up on Friday morning at 4am to a message that one of my friends had killed himself. So, Ricky lad, that's for you.
"Listen, if you're a man, please speak to someone, speak to anyone. I'd rather my mate cry on my shoulder than go to his funeral next week."
A video of his appeal soon went viral via the UFC’s official social media. By Sunday morning, it had more than five million views.
