Tom Aspinall is taking inspiration from traditional gypsy fighting arts in preparation for his upcoming title defence.
Aspinall will face Curtis Blaydes for the interim heavyweight title at UFC 304 in front of a home crowd at the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester, England on July 27. Aspinall claims to have Gypsy heritage and is using it to his advantage in his preparation for UFC 304.
“Honey Badger” features some of the moves shown by Irish bare-knuckle boxing legend Big Joe Joyce in the 2011 documentary “Knuckle,” which was filmed over a 12-year period and portrayed the secret world of Irish bare-knuckle boxing.
As a result, Aspinall now shadowboxes in the early hours of the morning with bales of hay wrapped around his hands, and he also soaks his knuckles in gasoline for 20 minutes as the sun comes up, which he says will stiffen them.
“Have you seen the documentary ‘Knuckle’? It’s a documentary about the traveling communities in the UK and Ireland, and there’s a guy in there who’s an old traveling legend called Big Joe Joyce, and Big Joe Joyce reveals some of the gypsy ways he prepares for a fight,” Aspinall said on “The MMA Hour.”
“And I wanted to lean a little bit into my gypsy traditions, so I came up with the idea to make a little ring with hay bales. When it gets to about 4 a.m., I’ll set my alarm and go outside and do a little bit of shadow boxing with the hay bales. Then, as the sun comes up, I’ll do the old traveller thing and dip my knuckles in gasoline for about 20 minutes. That way, it stiffens your knuckles.”
UFC 304 is scheduled for prime time in the US, with the main card starting at 3 a.m. British Summer Time (BST). Aspinall initially tried to convince UFC to change the timing of the card but was unsuccessful. However, Aspinall has now embraced the odd time, and according to him, it shouldn’t be a problem. Aspinall believes the performances of the most elite fighters are consistent regardless of the time of the bout.
“If you can play a really good game at midnight and you can’t play a really good game at 4 a.m., in my opinion, you weren’t that good to begin with. If that’s your excuse, you can find a better excuse than that,” he said. “You can find a better excuse than the time difference. If you’re a top-level, elite athlete, it shouldn’t be an issue. And it’s not an issue for me.”
