Nov 11, 2023; New York, NY, USA; Tom Aspinall (blue gloves) reacts to beating Sergei Pavlovich (red gloves) during UFC 295 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

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Tom Aspinall Shocked By “Uneducated Fans” Take On UFC 313 Main Event!

Tom Aspinall is in disbelief with the amount of fans thinking that Alex Pereira was robbed in his championship fight!

Nov 11, 2023; New York, NY, USA; Tom Aspinall (blue gloves) reacts to beating Sergei Pavlovich (red gloves) during UFC 295 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

The world of MMA is no stranger to controversy, especially when championship belts change hands. Fight fans have always been passionate about scoring debates, dating back to the start of the combat sports. But the latest scoring debate following Alex Pereira’s loss to Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313 has interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall particularly fired up.

UFC 313 delivered one of the most anticipated light heavyweight title fights in recent memory. Knockout artist Alex Pereira put his championship on the line against the surging Dagestani contender Magomed Ankalaev. What followed was a technical chess match that ended with Ankalaev being crowned the new champion by unanimous decision. This snapped Pereira’s impressive five-fight win streak at light heavyweight.

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Tom Aspinall Not Happy With Fans

Tom Aspinall has been making waves in the heavyweight division while awaiting his own title unification bout with Jon Jones. He didn’t hold back when addressing fan reactions to the fight in an interview with Jamal Niaz.

“I can’t believe people watch that fight and thought that Pereira won, it was just wild to me how many uneducated fans are out there. And how many uneducated fans out there thought it was a boring fight as well, I thought it was an amazing fight. Both guys did good and I think that Ankalaev was just a lot better than him on the night, that’s it.”

The British heavyweight seemed genuinely perplexed by the scoring controversy, adding that many viewers even called the technical battle “boring,” a take he strongly disagreed with.

Tom Aspinall’s Intertwined Destiny With Alex Pereira

What makes this situation interesting is that Aspinall himself has a vested interest in Pereira’s career trajectory. With ‘Poatan’ previously hinting at a potential move to heavyweight, many fight fans have speculated about possible matchups between the two power punchers. Also, Jones was adamant that he wanted to fight Pereira instead of the Brit. Also, Dana White had warmed up to the idea that Peirera would move to heavyweight if he won against Ankalaev.

However, these dreams remained just that: dreams. Pereira’s loss has warranted him to stay at light heavyweight and take a rematch with Magomed Ankalaev. As for Jones, his option for the next fight doesn’t exist anymore. He must fight Tom Aspinall to unify the belts. And if White is to be believed, it will happen this summer.

For fight fans following these interconnected storylines, the coming months promise plenty of drama both inside and outside the octagon. And as for those “uneducated” scoring takes? Well, as any fighter will tell you, don’t leave it in the hands of the judges, or in this case, the Twitter (X) users!

(Image Credit: Wendell Cruz – Imagn Images)

Alex Pereira

Jon Jones

Magomed Ankalaev

Tom Aspinall

Zaid Quraishi

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I am a dedicated MMA and Boxing content writer at The Playoffs. I was instantly hooked on MMA after watching the fight between Lyoto Machida vs. Gegard Mousasi back in 2014, and since then, i have been an avid writer with a deep love for the sport and its techniques, providing readers with a thorough understanding of the sport. My favorite aspect of working at The Playoffs is the creative freedom it provides. The diverse range of topics, from listicles and SEO to news articles, keeps me engaged and motivates me to continuously improve my skills! I aim to capture the excitement of the combat sports world in my writing, acting as the middleman between fighters and their die-hard fans. It is kind of like a referee, but with words!