The UFC Heavyweight Champion… More commonly known as the “Baddest Man on the Planet” by combat sports fans.

This weekend in Abu Dhabi, the title will be fought for by two of the deadliest men on the planet — England’s Tom Aspinall and France’s Ciryl Gane.

Over the years, the UFC has built a reputation for being the most dominant mixed martial arts promotion in the world, and at the moment, there’s no sign of that construction slowing down.

Tom Aspinall — one of the nicest guys in combat sports but, without doubt, one of the most deadly. The 6’4” man mountain makes the first defence of his UFC Heavyweight Championship in Abu Dhabi this weekend against Frenchman Ciryl Gane — but could the Lancashire lad be set for a return to boxing in the near future?

t started as a joke. A gimmick. A sideshow. “Influencer boxing” was the unwanted child of social media and combat sports—one nobody in the industry asked for and most wished would disappear. But here we are in 2025, and Misfits Boxing isn’t just surviving—it’s thriving. The very platform that once had boxing purists foaming at the mouth has packed out major arenas, racked up millions of pay-per-view buys, and built a die-hard fanbase willing to travel across continents to scream for their favourite YouTuber throwing overhand rights with all the precision of a bar brawl.

Boxing is a sport built on moments—the knockouts that make headlines, the wars that turn unknown fighters into overnight stars. But while those moments are celebrated by fans, the fighters delivering them often leave with little more than a handshake and a pat on the back. Meanwhile, in MMA, standout performances don’t just earn applause—they earn cash.

On Wednesday afternoon, Turki Alalshikh, UFC President Dana White, and WWE President Nick Khan announced one of the most breathtaking collaborations in the history of sport, let alone boxing. The trio are set to create a new boxing league under TKO Promotions, which is expected to change the landscape of the sport forever.

Despite previous meetings, the duo’s first official face-to-face elucidated what we already knew – Tyson Fury towers over his upcoming opponent Francis Ngannou. Almost like it is man versus boy.