Manchester MMA star Tom Aspinall successfully defended his title for the first time this weekend, finally burying ghosts from fights passed and celebrating in the most fitting fashion you could imagine: by smashing a load of fast food and naming his next fight.
So wonderfully Northern too, love it.
Aspinall already came into the fight as the UFC‘s reigning interim heavyweight champion, but the main goal was to finally give himself and the fans the fight they missed out on back in July 2022, when the Wigan-born fighter’s match against Curtis Blaydes was stopped just 15 seconds in with a knee injury.
However, the rematch at Co-op Live in the early hours of Sunday morning was even more impressive than anyone could have expected, defeating the American within just a minute of the first round. To make things look even more casual, he then proceeded to eat a pizza only minutes later.
Still in his gear, barely a drop of sweat on him and sharing it with another North West victor on the night, Paddy Pimblett – now that’s an iconic look if we’ve ever seen one.
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It only took one big hit from the Salford-born, Atherton-raised 31-year-old to knock Blaydes for six before he proceeded to pounce on his stunned opponent and earn himself the stoppage.
Not only is Aspinall now posting a fight record of 15-3-0 but this was also his fastest bout ever, beating the 33-year-old within a mere 60 seconds.
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You can watch the full highlights HERE (spoilers: it’s not a long video…) but we can’t lie, we equally enjoyed watching him call out heavyweight champion and UFC legend Jon Jones, simply stating: “I think I’m better than you.”
This is a man who is now more sure of his ability than ever and we’re absolutely here for it.
Elsewhere, fellow Brit Leon Edwards lost his title to US welterweight Belal Muhammad and, as mentioned, Scouse star Paddy ‘The Baddy’ also won with a first-round submission to continue his seven-fight unbeaten streak (five wins, three draws) in the lightweight category.
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It remains to be seen whether Jones will answer back after being called out by Tom Aspinall – now considered by many to be the best in the world – having turned down multiple offers in recent years, but there’s no doubt the fans would love to see it as his next fight.
Until then, please enjoy the Manc champ once again rewarding himself with one of his very own burgers from the much-loved fast food spot over in Chorley.
Tyson Fury has officially revealed his comeback fight after coming out of ‘retirement’ once again
Danny Jones
Tyson Fury has officially announced the opponent for his comeback fight after yet again returning to professional boxing.
Fury supposedly ‘retired’ for seemingly the umpteenth time last January following his second defeat to Oleksandr Usyk the month prior, and some even believed it might have actually been his final outing.
Nevertheless, ‘The Gypsy King’ said he was coming out of retirement once more earlier this year, and now his next match-up has been confirmed.
Revealing the other contender as Aslanbek Makhmudo, the fight will be aired live on Netflix only.
Tyson Fury is coming home.
TYSON FURY vs. ARSLANBEK MAKHMUDOV. Saturday April 11 from the United Kingdom — and LIVE only on Netflix. pic.twitter.com/ib7KjT3xIt
Partnered exclusively with boxing magazine, Ring, the bout between Fury and Makhmudo is the latest big fight night to be picked up by the streaming giants.
The most recent example was, obviously, Anthony Joshua’s brutal knockout of influencer-turned-boxer Jake Paul this past December.
Makhmudo, just a year younger than his opposite number, is a fellow experienced heavyweight based mainly out of Canada with a decent pedigree of his own.
The Russian, simply known as ‘The Lion’, has a record of 21 wins – more than half of those coming by KO.
With that in mind, he presents a potentially exciting prospect for the famous Manchester fighter, who hasn’t won a proper competitive fight since the defence of his WBC belt against Derek Chisora in December 2022.
Similarly, this should at least see two very well-seasoned pros going head to head.
Many fight fans would argue that there haven’t been enough proper big heavyweight dates since Fury vs Usyk, and even then, we are still yet to get a date for the all-but fully confirmed final fight of the trilogy.
Fury himself did state that the conclusion of their clash is scheduled for this April, but nothing official has been set in stone by any promotion or venue and the new date means it’s even less likely to be any time soon; meanwhile, plenty are still hoping for AJ vs Fury.
The 37-year-old will take on Makhmudo on Saturday, 11 April, and you can bet the world will be watching.
Manchester City finally release special Year of the Horse collection for Lunar celebrations
Danny Jones
Manchester City have officially launched their new ‘Year of the Horse’ kit, along with several other items in their latest lifestyle range.
The collection, which has been released as part of the Lunar New Year Celebrations, was leaked online in late 2025 before being officially teased earlier this year, but now Man City have fully unveiled the limited edition clothing items.
It follows the commercial success of their previous Chinese New Year-inspired kits and wider fashion lines over the last few seasons.
For anyone not up to speed on their Zodiac calendar knowledge, 2026 is officially (you guessed it) the year of the horse, hence this choice for the new ‘Capsule Collection’.
“Set in earthy, neutral tones, the limited-edition Year of the Horse Capsule Collection captures both the stillness of vintage Chinese portraiture and the motion of a team in full stride.”
Revolving around a grey and almost beige colour palette, the full drop includes a new pre-match ‘Anthem’ jacket, a dark graphic design tee, a baseball cap, as well as a soft horse plushie.
The focal point, however, is obviously the jersey itself – though it remains to be confirmed whether or not the special seasonal strip will be worn in any games this campaign as other one-off/special limited edition shirts have been in the past.
The price points range from £15 for the soft toy to £90 for the adult shirt, with the aforementioned Puma KING Anthem zip-up jacket already available in six colours.
What do you make of the latest lifestyle collection, Blues?
Somewhat fittingly, the Year of the Horse and other items finally debuted on the same day that their local rivals across the other side of town, Manchester United, released some new threads of their own: the second Adidas x The Stone Roses collection.
As for this years Lunar celebrations, the official plans for here in Manchester city centre have now been revealed. You can find out more down below.
Danny Jones -
29th July 2024 
