Tom Aspinall has named his toughest hitting opponent.
The interim UFC heavyweight champion has defeated top contenders Curtis Blaydes, Sergei Pavlovich and Alexander Volkov to establish himself as the best big man in MMA.
Outside the Octagon, he has refined his striking skills by sparring with former world champion boxer Tyson Fury, kickboxing legend Rico Verhoeven and a number of other elite-level fighters.
However, it's someone you may not have heard of that hit him the hardest.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
Tom Aspinall remembers 'Big Sexy' boxer's sparring
Tom Aspinall says Sean Turner packs a hell of a punch.
The boxer nicknamed 'Big Sexy' has an unremarkable professional record of 12-4, including eight knockout victories and a defeat to top contender Filip Hrgovic.
Turner caught the UFC superstar off guard when they traded blows a few years ago.
“I've sparred with a lot of good boxers,” Aspinall told talkSPORT in May 2023.
“I saved a lot with Rico Verhoeven, who is the Glory Kickboxing Champion, literally the best kickboxer ever, statistically.
“There was one man in particular that I talked to a long time ago, and his name is… I can't even remember his name. They called him 'Big Sexy'.
“Sean Turner! Sean Turner, he's mentioned. I don't even know if he's still boxing, but I did a few rounds with that guy and that guy hits really hard.
“He hits extremely hard, he's definitely one of the hardest punches I've ever sparred. I don't even know if he's still boxing, this was quite a few years ago I sparred him.
'Maybe it's because I didn't know him. When I was sparring with Tyson Fury, Joe Joyce and Rico Verhoeven, with people like that – these were renowned knockout artists – I expected a little more.
“This guy, Sean Turner, I didn't really know who he was, and he hit me really hard, and I was like, 'Wow! This man has serious power. ''
What's next for Tom Aspinall?
Aspinall will next hope to secure a unification fight with Jon Jones.
The UFC heavyweight champion is fresh off a knockout victory over Stipe Miocic in the UFC 309 main event, seemingly setting up a clash with the interim titleholder.
Jones would rather face light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira than the Englishman.
However, UFC boss Dana White ruled out Jones vs Pereira after his penultimate pay-per-view show of the year last month.
Now, Aspinall is feeling good about his chances of facing 'Bones' in the very near future.
“I'm confident it's going to happen,” he told Bloody Elbow.
'Obviously I have to keep a lot of things secret. I've had conversations with the higher-ups in the UFC and they are confident that this will happen.
“I don't know from Jon's side, but I do know from my side and the UFC side it's very likely.”
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