If Tom Aspinall wants to make some serious bank in combat sports, boxing might be the way forward according to his father Andy.
Aspinall was confirmed as the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion earlier this year following the retirement of Jon Jones — which itself came after the Englishman’s prolonged pursuit of the former longtime light heavyweight pacesetter. But with a high profile title defence set for Abu Dhabi against Ciryl Gane next month, Aspinall remains outside the top earners in combat sports, and according to his father and longtime trainer, Andy Aspinall, there are some other avenues he can pursue if he is to make the most of his earning potential.
“He’ll have a fight now and hopefully he’ll have a fight January and hopefully I’d like him to headline a card in England if he wants to do that again,” Andy said on his son’s YouTube channel, as reported by MMA Fighting.
“And then just see what he wants to do from that. If he’s not bothered about the money, I’d love him to have a very highly paid boxing match for the money. The money’s there and I don’t see why somebody as talented as Tom shouldn’t have a piece of that money when the boxers are getting a hundred times more, more than a hundred times more. The UFC ain’t paying that type of money. If they would, it would be great and he could get the money, but I think these one percent of people who are very, very good should get paid.”
Francis Ngannou, who previously held the UFC heavyweight title that Aspinall now lays claim to, was paid a reported $10 million for his bout against Tyson Fury in 2023 (excluding PPV revenue and bonuses) — a figure which dwarfs the largest sum Aspinall has earned in his career.
“Tom’s money, some people say it’s good, compared to a football player, an American footballer who we’ve talked to when we’re in America, he’s earning a tiny fraction of what they’re earning and he’s one of the best in the world at doing what he does and not getting paid enough. And it’s very dangerous, so when he’s got enough to get out of it, I’d say get out of it,” Andy added.
But Andy also stated that cash isn’t at the forefront of his son’s — and especially his own — ambitions in the fight game.
“When he gets out of it healthy, that’s all I’m bothered about,” he said. “He’s made some money now, he could get out of it now if he wanted to and do something else. He still wants to prove a bit more and I’m still active enough to keep doing it with me, so when he wants to get out, he can get out.
“Won’t bother me if he packs in tomorrow. Just what we do together, this. Find something else to do together. He’s got three kids. Going to do loads of stuff with them, so still got loads of stuff to do, hopefully.”
