Tom Aspinall

Tom Aspinall is the UFC heavyweight champion, and he might be the strangest thing the division has ever produced: a 260-pound man who moves like a welterweight and finishes fights like he's double-parked. Of his 15 wins, 14 never saw a second round's worth of trouble — 11 knockouts, 4 submissions, and an average fight time that has hovered around two minutes for most of his career.

The Manchester native grew up on the mats — his father is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt who coached him from childhood — which explains the part opponents find most unfair. Heavyweights are supposed to be safe once the fight hits the floor against a boxer-puncher. Against Aspinall, the ground is where the arm-locks live.

His path had one famous detour: the freak knee injury against Curtis Blaydes in London in 2022, fifteen seconds into the fight. He rebuilt, knocked out Sergei Pavlovich for the interim title in 2023, flattened Blaydes in the rematch, and eventually took undisputed status when the division finally sorted itself out.

Now the question that follows every dominant heavyweight follows him: who's left? The division keeps sending contenders; Aspinall keeps sending them home early.