UFC heavyweight Tom Aspinall has racked up five wins quicker than any other fighter in the promotion's history.
The Manchester native has burst into the promotion's top 10 with stunning wins over top contenders like Alexander Volkov, Sergey Spivak and former champion Andrei Arlovksi. And after getting rid of Volkov within less than four minutes of their clash on Saturday at UFC London, Aspinall has earned himself the honour of having got to 5-0 in the octagon within the fastest time.
It took him just 14 minutes and 24 seconds, that's 36 seconds less than the length of a standard three-round fight, to finish his five opponents since making his debut in July of 2020. He has yet to be taken past the second round, and has only made it to the corner once since signing with the promotion.
Ronda Rousey had held the record since 2015 when her 14-second submission of Cat Zingano placed her time at 17 minutes and 23 seconds. She was taken into deep waters by long-time rival Miesha Tate, who was the only woman to ever go past two rounds with Rousey during her legendary career.
Thanks to picking up an injury in the middle of his sophomore UFC outing against a young Max Holloway, Conor McGregor's speed is way down at 29 minutes and 15 seconds. He landed four first round knockouts, including Dustin Poirier and TUF winner Diego Brandao, but the 15 minutes it took him to beat Holloway cost him a spot on the list.
Frank Mir held the record prior to Rousey, clocking in at 19 minutes and 28 seconds. Also featured on the top six list compiled by Numbers MMA are Mike Swick at 20 minutes and 10 seconds, Junior Dos Santos at 20 minutes and 15 seconds and Anderson Silva at 21 minutes and 56 seconds.
Aspinall sent the sold out London crowd at The O2 arena into a frenzy on Saturday with his submission victory over Volkov, and catapulted himself to No.6 in the rankings. He has since called for a fight with Tai Tuivasa, who is the No.3 heavyweight in the world and one of the most fearsome punchers in the heavyweight division.
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He competed behind closed doors for the first four fights of his deal with the promotion due to coronavirus protocols, but wowed the 16,000 crowd with his grappling. “It couldn’t have gone any better,” Aspinall explained after the fight. “That was the ideal performance. I truly thought I was going to go five rounds.
"To get a guy like Volkov who has been finished twice in the UFC out of there in the first round, just shows credit to my finishing ability. My finishing ability is highest of the high level - it was everything I dreamed of and more.
"Unbelievable. I see a lot of media and s*** like that, ‘Oh, he’s gonna feel the pressure when he fights in front of a crowd. Oh, he’s gonna feel the pressure with Volkov who is a veteran.’ Other people might feel the pressure. Other people are not me. I’m different.”
