Tom Aspinall: The Fear Every UFC Fighter Hides & Learning To Use It As Fuel (E351)

I'm not trying to blow my own trumpet, but I'm literally the most dangerous guy in the UFC if you look at the stats. If you're not scared then, you're either a complete idiot or you're lying. It's not always a negative thing for you. So I used to watch interviews of all these other guys and think, I'm different because I am scared and these guys aren't scared. You need to get into a space mentally, and this is going to sound really brutal, where you're willing to die in there because that's how bad you need to want it.

That is the voice of Tom Aspinall, the UFC interim heavyweight champion, and in his own words, a man willing to step into a cage with the most dangerous unarmed man on the planet, knowing one of them might not leave conscious. This is Tom like you've never heard him. In fact, I don't think we've ever heard any fighter talk like this before, Damien. No, he talks really candidly about the role of fear, how he's learnt to control it rather than let it consume him when he steps into the octagon. He's spoken about

why he's willing to pay the ultimate price of dying in the ring to achieve success. And he also talks about how diamonds are formed via pressure and how pressure has helped him become an even better fighter. As well as that he opens up on being broke, providing for his family and his dad's unshakable belief in his son's abilities. Also, keep listening to see what happens when his dad gate crashes the interview. And of course, we talk about John Jones.

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