Tom Aspinall previews potential Alex Pereira heavyweight clash, plans to "rugby tackle" Brazilian in "first 10 seconds"

Tom Aspinall recently shared his strategy for a potential heavyweight showdown against Alex Pereira, outlining his approach to dominate the fight from the outset with takedowns. These two towering figures might one day collide in the octagon for a super fight, and the Brit is already single-minded with his game plan.

Aspinall is preparing to put his interim heavyweight title on the line in a rematch against Curtis Blaydes in the co-main event of UFC 304. The UFC's upcoming pay-per-view is set for July 27 at the Co-op Live arena in Manchester, England.

Although Aspinall has the upcoming task of avenging his loss against a former foe next week, he's already setting his sights on a potential clash with 'Poatan'. Instead of engaging in a striking battle, the 31-year-old Salford native plans to leverage his wrestling skills and execute takedown-heavy tactics to secure victory.

During a recent interview with JNMEDIAUK, Aspinall said:

"The bell would go, and I'd f**king run across full blast and rugby tackle him. First 10 seconds of the fight [to execute takedowns]. Well, I got one very reliable takedown, if you watch my fight with [Andrei] Arlovski I did the spear... Full blast mate, f**king 40-yard dash straight across, head in the middle in a full-on spear."

Check out Tom Aspinall's comments below:

Aspinall is riding high on the momentum of back-to-back first-round finishes against Sergei Pavlovich and Marcin Tybura. Boasting a 7-1 record in his eight octagon appearances, his only setback is a first-round TKO loss to Curtis Blaydes, which resulted from an untimely knee injury at UFC London in July 2022.

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Alex Pereira nixes the idea of fighting Tom Aspinall for interim heavyweight title

Alex Pereira is willing to move up to the heavyweight division, but only if it's for the undisputed championship. Last month, 'Poatan' successfully retained his light heavyweight title by knocking out Jiri Prochazka at UFC 303. Following his victory, the MMA community suggested Tom Aspinall as a future opponent.

However, Pereira has made it clear that he is only interested in competing for the official heavyweight title. During a recent video on his YouTube channel, the Brazilian said:

"It doesn’t interest me to fight [Aspinall] at the moment. To be honest, heavyweight isn’t my goal, it isn’t my main focus. Tom Aspinall, not talking him as a fighter, I’m talking positions... I am not taking anything away from [Aspinall], I respect him a lot. I think he’s an incredible athlete, a guy that is very dangerous technically. I’m just talking about fighting for an interim belt. There’s no point for me."

Check out Alex Pereira's comments below (5:41):