Pavlovich, Aspinall Deemed ‘Unworthy’ Of Champ Status

A new interim UFC Heavyweight champion will be crowned at UFC 295 in Madison Square Garden next week (Sat., Nov. 11, 2023).

Jon Jones’ unfortunate tear in his pectoral muscle will keep him sidelined for the better part of 2024, requiring an eight-month recovery post-surgery. Therefore, a void needs to be filled atop the weight class and that’s where Sergei Pavlovich and Tom Aspinall come in.

The top contenders are set to collide with the interim title on the line. The community hasn’t taken much of an issue with the match up itself, but for former two-division champion, Henry Cejudo, he doesn’t see why gold is on the line.

“These are two guys that are up-and-coming, that are in their prime, that can potentially challenge a guy like Jones or Stipe, the winner of that,” Cejudo said on his YouTube channel (h/t MMA Junkie). “It is exciting, but is it worth an interim Heavyweight championship of the world? No, it isn’t.

“I think we’re starting to dilute a little bit of what it is to actually be a UFC champion,” he continued. “I think this is more of a No. 1 contender spot, and I think that’s what you call it. I think maybe the UFC, if they’re going to do that, then start creating new belts or make the interim belt silver for that matter.”

Pavlovich and Aspinall have been linked to each other in the past for a potential showdown but it never materialized for one reason or another. Since then, they’ve continued to find success, finishing opponent after opponent to obtain their ranks as the No. 2 and 4 Heavyweights in UFC. Despite his feelings on the interim title status, if Cejudo had to pick a winner, he leans towards the devastating knockout artist.

“I’m going for the Russian,” Cejudo said. “I think Sergei is a lot more agile. I think he brings a lot more power. I think Tom is good, I think Tom’s footwork could be a little problematic, but there’s something about Russians that they just come from a great school of technique, of the school of combat. For that reason, I got to go with Sergei. There’s a lot of hype with him. He’s got knockout power. … For that reason at Heavyweight, you got to go with power.”