With his eye on the UFC belt, Malhadinho reinforces his challenge to Aspinall: 'Ready for war'

Jailton Malhadinho in victory in the UFC (Photo: Instagram)

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Jailton Malhadinho remains focused on the goal of becoming the first challenger for the belt Tom aspinall, promoted to linear champion of the UFC heavyweights (up to 120,2 kg) after the retirement of Jon Jones. First name of the category to be publicly demonstrate After the change, the Bahian reinforced the challenge to the British in recent statements, revealing part of the strategy to dethrone him.

In an interview with 'MMA fighting', Malhadinho said he believes his best chance against Aspinall is to lengthen the fight, exploiting the champion's lack of experience in fights that go beyond the second round.

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“It’s going to be a great fight, because our styles are similar. He’s fast. It’s no wonder he’s the champion. What I saw of him Tom aspinall is that he doesn't fight five rounds. He never has. He gets tired after the second one. Tom aspinall has never been tested to fight more than three rounds. I'm doing six, seven rounds in the gym and I'm not even training for the fight yet. If I face Tom aspinall, I'll take him to the third round to see how he does,” said the Brazilian.

Malhadinho acknowledges, however, that theory does not always translate easily into the octagon. Still, he says he is ready for the challenge of a possible title fight.

“Aspinall is no fool, he is very experienced and has faced tough opponents, so I have to be smart and come up with a good strategy to beat him. For me, when the door closes, it’s war. I’m ready for war,” he concluded.

How is the UFC heavyweight division?

The division of UFC heavyweights (up to 120,2 kg) goes through a restructuring phase after the retirement of Jon Jones. With the departure of the American, the then interim champion Tom aspinall was promoted to linear champion and now awaits the definition of his first official challenger.

Among the main names considered for the dispute is Cyryl Gane, currently number one in the category rankings. The Frenchman is in good form, coming off two consecutive victories — the most recent over Alexander Volkov, in December 2024 — and is considered the favorite to face Aspinall in a possible fight for the linear belt.

In addition to Gane, other strong names remain in the race for the title, such as Jailton Malhadinho, fifth in the ranking and coming off a victory over Serghei Spivac.