Interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall was the official backup fighter for the UFC 309 main event between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic before sitting down cageside to watch the two MMA legends.
But how much money do you get paid as a backup fighter for the UFC if your services are ultimately not needed? Well, it turns out you can earn yourself a nice payday, as Tom Aspinall just discovered.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
Tom Aspinall accidentally leaks payday for being UFC 309's backup fighter
It may have been UFC 309: Jones vs Miocic, but make no mistake: Fight Week was all about interim champion Tom Aspinall, who joined on Friday as the official backup fighter in case one of the athletes pulled out at the last minute .
As revealed in his latest VLOG, shared via his official YouTube channel, even as he entered Madison Square Garden on fight night, Aspinall was still ready to step up on short notice.
'You never know, do you – that's not possible, we can't fight now, can we, it's just after 3 o'clock [time]” said the popular British juggernaut who was desperately looking for an alcoholic drink at the time.
“Right, so we're in the VIP lounge at MSG and I'm here with the short-term guy himself, Dan Ige, and we're talking about taking fights on short notice, Dan – can I have a beer? ”
“Even if you fight tonight, you can still have a beer,” laughed “50K,” who fought Diego Lopes at UFC 303 on just a few hours notice earlier this summer.
It was at this point that Aspinall contacted UFC matchmaker Hunter Campbell to ask if he could have a drink with the main event less than two hours away.
“No drinking until they walk out, that's what was said,” Aspinall teased, as the interim champion flashed his phone screen at the camera for just a few seconds – enough for sleuths at the two had been said. .
According to Hunter Campbell's report, Aspinall was set to receive a $200,000 payout for being the official backup fighter for the UFC 309 main event – and he wasn't about to risk that payout by getting the interim champion drunk before the case Jones or Miocic pulled out.
“For $200,000, I would really appreciate it if he could wait until they're done [Jones and Miocic] walk…I would kill myself if I said yes and something happened.”
While we can't be 100% certain that this was the full payout for Aspinall's NYC adventure, it would make sense that the British juggernaut would get such a large sum for his arrival – especially considering the amount of marketing he did during UFC 309 to UFC 309. Fight week.
📱 Tom Aspinall gets knocked out by UFC boss Hunter Campbell when he asks if he can “have a beer” while at MSG for Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic.
“For $200,000 I would really appreciate it if he could wait for them (Jon/Stipe) to walk…I would find myself saying yes and something happened.”… pic.twitter.com/FBjOwKfxdq
— AfeldmanMMA (@afeldMMA) November 18, 2024
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But even with that extra promotion and a pretty nice reserve purse, Aspinall stated on the ESPN MMA post show that he wouldn't want to have the same experience again.
“I wouldn't do it again, I don't want to be a backup fighter again, that's not what I want to do, I want to be the defending champion next time – I don't want to do that kind of thing again.
“The closer the fight got, the more I thought, 'Oh my God, what if I actually have to fight someone in a few hours.' Today in particular I was thinking, 'What if someone withdraws, gets sick or injured – very stressful to be honest.'
In the immediate aftermath of UFC 309, Jon Jones would reject Aspinall as his next opponent; although the Brit is said to have claimed his secret meeting with the UFC brass was a 'huge success'.
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