Much like the co-main event at UFC 304, the main event features two fights who have unfinished business. Interim Heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall has a score to settle with contender Curtis Blaydes stemming from their first meeting in 2022 where Aspinall suffered a major knee injury just seconds into the fight, rewarding Blaydes with the victory.
Once he recovered from his knee injury, Aspinall torpedoed through the rest of the heavyweight division, capitalizing on the uncertainty surrounding the top of the division.
With reigning champion Jon Jones sidelined due to injury and slated to face Stipe Miocic once healthy, Aspinall returned to beat Marcin Tybura in July of last year, then answered the short-notice call to fight for the Interim Heavyweight title against Sergei Pavlovich last November. Aspinall would claim his first UFC gold with a first-round knockout of Pavlovich, as the undisputed title continued to be held up.
In the time in which Aspinall was claiming Interim gold, Blaydes was working to get himself back in title contention, which he did in emphatic fashion at UFC 299. At the time, Blaydes was scheduled against undefeated prospect Jailton Almeida and got himself right back into the title picture with a second-round TKO victory.
Staying patient and allowing the top of the division to play itself out, Blaydes took the calm and calculated approach, which eventually led to the call for the UFC 304 main event. Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic are rumored to fight for the undisputed title in November, although nothing is confirmed as of yet. It only made sense that eight months after, a rare interim title defense fight was booked between Aspinall and Blaydes.
Even with the interim title being on the line, there is no telling what happens after Jones and Miocic fight for the undisputed title. Both men could retire following their matchup, which could then lead to the winner of Aspinall and Blaydes to be named the new undisputed champion.
Both men know their first fight had an unfortunate ending, and both took their own respective path to get to the UFC 304 main event, and both know the massive stakes ahead of them.
The aura of an undisputed title may not surround this event, but both men understand that they represent a changing of the guard in the UFC’s heavyweight division. There have been calls for current light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira to jump to heavyweight and look to become the first-ever three-division champion in promotion history, and that very well could be next in line for the winner of the UFC 304 main event.
After years of being held up by rivalries, grudge matches, and injuries to the champions, the UFC’s heavyweight division will begin a new era. With either Tom Aspinall or Curtis Blaydes leading the charge, there will be countless opportunities waiting in the wings for the UFC 304 main event winner.
