'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
This weekend sees the UFC return to the UK for the first time since before the COVID-19 pandemic, with a Fight Night card headlined by Alexander Volkov vs. Tom Aspinall.
This weekend’s UFC Fight Night looks set to be a pretty great one, with a number of excellent fights on both the main card and the preliminary card.
While this event doesn’t feature a title bout, it does have plenty of name value, making it well worth checking out.
Here are five reasons to watch UFC Fight Night: Alexander Volkov vs. Tom Aspinall.
#5. The UFC’s return to the UK should ensure a truly raucous crowd
Ever since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic back in March 2020, the UFC has changed its operations entirely when it comes to its Fight Night shows on the ESPN+ streaming service.
While the promotion would often travel to various US states and numerous countries outside of the US for these shows, the pandemic forced them to produce events almost purely at their APEX Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
This has been both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, the Vegas setting allowed the promotion to easily put together events during the height of the pandemic, even when other sports were unable to keep their athletes active.
However, the lack of live crowds for these Fight Night shows has meant that the atmosphere at them has been subdued somewhat, meaning some truly epic moments have been made far less memorable.
That won’t be an issue this weekend, as the promotion visits London for the first time since 2019. The fact that UK fans have been starved of seeing live events for so long practically guarantees a raucous crowd, and the fact that so many UK favorites are in action should ensure no lulls from the fans.
Seeing a Fight Night event with a raucous crowd will be something not experienced by fans not attending live for a long time – meaning that even if the fights on offer turn out to be under par, it will still be a show well worth checking out.
#4. Gunnar Nelson is back in the UFC for the first time since 2019
If you rewind almost a decade, there were few hotter prospects in the UFC’s welterweight division than Gunnar Nelson. The native of Iceland blended a genuinely world-class grappling game with an unorthodox striking attack and looked almost guaranteed to become a future title contender.
Unfortunately for ‘Gunni’, that didn’t really pan out. Losses to Rick Story and Demian Maia took the shine off him as a prospect, and while he rebounded from them well, between 2017 and 2019 he lost three bouts out of four.
Nelson now hasn’t competed since his loss to Gilbert Burns in September 2019, but this weekend sees him finally return to the octagon, facing late replacement Takashi Sato.
Quite how much Nelson has to offer now is a bit of a mystery, but at the age of 33, he should still be in his athletic prime, and he’s never really taken that much damage over the years, either.
That means that given the lack of prospective opponents for current welterweight kingpin Kamaru Usman, there’s a chance that with a couple of wins, ‘Gunni’ could get back into contention.
Of course, to do that he’ll have to get past Sato this weekend, and while the fight seems stylistically good for the Icelandic fighter, it should still be a decent barometer as to where he stands – making it a must-see fight overall.
#3. Arnold Allen might be one of the UFC’s most underrated fighters
There are a number of underrated fighters currently operating in the UFC, and featherweight contender Arnold Allen is almost certainly near the top of that list.
‘Almighty’ is currently ranked at #7 in the division and holds a massively impressive octagon record of 8-0, but for most casual fans, the English native may as well not even exist. Indeed, he’s only appeared on the main card of an event on two occasions before.
This weekend, though, marks his first real push into the spotlight. Not only is he positioned in the show’s co-headliner, but he’s also facing Dan Hooker, a fighter who has headlined more than one UFC show in his time with the promotion.
This fight is undoubtedly a tricky one to call; Allen is the more proven fighter at 145lbs thanks to his wins over Sodiq Yusuff and Gilbert Melendez, but Hooker has more experience and holds wins over the likes of Paul Felder and Al Iaquinta.
Whether he wins or loses, though, the technical skill and expert poise of Allen should make this a very watchable fight, and hopefully, when all is said and done, he won’t be such an unknown any more. Regardless, his high ranking makes this clash a fight to keep an eye on.
#2. Tom Aspinall could take a step towards title contention in the main event
The UK has a number of hot prospects operating in the UFC right now, but while Arnold Allen is higher ranked and Paddy Pimblett has more hype around him, it’s arguable that the fighter closest to a title shot is heavyweight Tom Aspinall.
Part of this is due to the thin nature of the heavyweight division, but it’s also hard to deny that Aspinall has enjoyed a fantastic run in the octagon thus far into his career with the promotion.
The Liverpool native has gone 4-0 in the UFC, and already holds impressive wins over Andrei Arlovski and Sergey Spivak. Right now, he’s ranked at #11 in the division.
If he can pick up a win over Alexander Volkov in this weekend’s headline bout, though, it’s practically a guarantee that he’ll enter the top ten – and may well be just one win away from a title shot.
The fact that such a high-level prospect is fighting in this weekend’s headliner makes this a must-see show in itself, but Aspinall’s aggressive style – both on the feet and the mat – should also guarantee some fireworks, something that isn’t always the case when Volkov fights.
Essentially, this should be an excellent headliner that’s well worth checking out.
#1. Paddy Pimblett is one of the hottest prospects in the UFC right now
Perhaps the biggest reason for fans to watch this weekend’s UFC Fight Night show is the fact that Paddy Pimblett is in action. Despite the fact that he isn’t fighting against a ranked opponent, it’s safe to say that ‘The Baddy’ will undoubtedly receive a star reception from the fans.
It sounds crazy, given that he’s only had one win in the octagon thus far, but many observers have compared Pimblett’s meteoric rise to fame – something largely caused by his infectious personality and charisma on the microphone – to the rise of Conor McGregor almost a decade ago.
However, the way that the Liverpool native seemingly wants to climb slowly to the top of the lightweight division means that he should probably be compared more closely to another current prospect, bantamweight Sean O’Malley.
‘Sugar’ famously snacked on overmatched opponents before climbing into the rankings in more recent months, and Pimblett could follow in his footsteps here if he can beat the unheralded Kazula Vargas in entertaining fashion.
Given that the UFC likely won't want ’The Baddy’ to fail just yet, it’s likely that this fight will end in his favor, probably in entertaining fashion. It may even end up being one of 2022’s more memorable moments, making it a fight not to miss overall.
