Tom Aspinall landed the interim heavyweight title on Saturday, November 11, when he faced Sergei Pavlovich at Madison Square Garden in New York. The pair squared off in the co-main event at UFC 295: Prochazka vs Pereira live on ESPN+ PPV.
The scheduled for five rounds championship bout didn’t go the distance. The British fighter rocked and dropped his opponent with a repeated overhand right and finished the job with a number of hammer first. Referee Dan Miragliotta stopped the fight at 1 minute and 9 seconds into the first round.
With the victory by knockout, Tom Aspinall improved to 14-3. In addition to he belt, the 30-year-old native of Leigh, England secured his second win in a row.
Sergei Pavlovich dropped to 18-2. The 31-year-old got his six-win streak snapped.
UFC 295 was initially scheduled to see a highly anticipated heavyweight title fight between reigning champion Jon Jones and former titleholder Stipe Miocic. The fight was postponed after “Bones” suffered injury at training.
Aspinall is now expected to face the winner of Jones vs Miocic fight at a future event.
Tom Aspinall KO’s Sergei Pavlovich
In Australia, the event aired on Sunday, November 12 live on Kayo.
Get UFC 295: Prochazka vs Pereira full fight card results.
Exclusive ExpressVPN offer for FIGHTMAG readers: Get 3 extra months free with a 12-month subscription. That’s a saving of 49%.
Links to streaming, pay-per-view, ticketing or VPN platforms provided on this page, if any, are affiliate links. We will be paid a commission, with no extra cost to you, if you use those links to make a purchase.