UFC London: Tom Aspinall submits Alexander Volkov in 1st round, calls out Tai Tuivasa

Tom Aspinall hasn’t been spending a lot of time in the Octagon and he didn’t again on Saturday in front of a raucous home crowd at the O2 Arena in London.

But the 11th-ranked UFC heavyweight used the 3:45 he was in the cage against Alexander Volkov wisely. He showed why many regard him as not only a potential future champion but a star in a suddenly renewed and reinvigorated heavyweight division.

Aspinall outboxed and outwrestled the sixth-ranked Volkov and put his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt to good use. He used his quickness to slip a head kick and a right hand from Volkov. He took him down and then submitted him with a straight armlock at 3:45.

Aspinall is the complete package and deserves to be in the company with the elite of the division. Heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou underwent surgery in Los Angeles on Friday and is out for nine months, but with former champion Stipe Miocic, ex-interim champion Ciryl Gane, knockout king Derrick Lewis, power-puncher Tai Tuivasa and ex-light heavyweight champion Jon Jones, there is loads of talent in the upper reaches of the division.

Add Aspinall to that list. His boxing was superb, both offensively and defensively. He dropped Volkov early with a three-punch combination, and then split the Russian’s ear open with a strong ground-and-pound, dropping an elbow on it.

Volkov managed to get up, but it wasn’t for long. He threw a kick and a right hand, both of which Aspinall slipped. Aspinall quickly transitioned to wrestling, and hit a double leg that was the beginning of the end. Volkov tapped almost immediately after Aspinall put on the armlock.

The major concern about him before the fight was how he’d handle the emotions of fighting in front of a massive crowd with huge expectations, and he passed the test perfectly. He was flawless from start to finish.

“Listen people, I’ve been telling everybody all week, I’m born for this,” Aspinall said in the cage as the crowd roared its approval. “I’m ready.”

Aspinall entered the fight with an 11-2 record and on an eight-bout winning streak. But he hadn’t faced anyone remotely near Volkov’s caliber.

But though he’s largely soft-spoken and humble, he never doubted he’d be able to chop the big Russian down. He smiled when asked the secret of his success.

“The secret is self-belief,” Aspinall said. “I believe in myself, my Dad (Coach Andy Aspinall), all my coaches and my teammates. They’ve believed in me and my brother is always there helping me. I believe in myself so much because of everyone around me."

Aspinall later called out Tuivasa, who jumped to No. 3 in the rankings after a vicious KO of the fifth-ranked Lewis.

That would be an incredibly fun fight and probably wouldn’t go past the first round.

Whether he gets him or not remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: Aspinall is only going to be fighting the game’s elite from this point forward.