The UFC hits the road and is bringing the show to London, UK, for the first time since 2019. The main event sees Tom Aspinall face off with Alexander Volkov on his home turf for a five-round heavyweight clash. Get the latest odds and pre-fight info for all main card bouts at UFC Fight Night London.
UFC Fight Night London: Volkov vs. Aspinall
- Date: Saturday, March 19
- Location: O2 Arena, London United Kingdom
- Broadcast: ESPN+ 1:00 PM ET
- Prelims ESPN+ 4:00 PM ET
Alexander Volkov vs. Tom Aspinall Fight Odds
This heavyweight bout is the main event of the night and will feature two fighters with some incredible records. Tom Aspinall has never lost a UFC fight, and Alexander Volkov has won three of his last four matchups. This will be a battle of the two of the best strikers in the division and promises to be an electric end to the night’s events.
Volkov enters the Octagon ranked #6 and will be the slight favorite. He has won some impressive fights in the last eighteen months. In October, he bounced back from his defeat against Cyril Gane with a unanimous decision against Marcin Tybura at UFC 267.
The Russian stands at a massive 6′ 7 and will enter with a 2-inch reach advantage. Alexander also has a huge amount of professional experience, packing 43 fights into his record. You won’t find a closer contest than this around – the odds at UFC betting sites are barely able to separate the two.
Tom Aspinall is currently ranked #11, but as many see a title shot for the UK fighter in due time he needs to surpass Volkov to make that a reality. The Brit will enter the bout as a slight underdog, with a slim height and reach disadvantage to overcome.
Aspinall first made his debut back in July 2020. Since then, he has finished all his fights early – three out of four in the first round. His most recent win came against Sergey Spivak in September. While Tom’s skills are mainly in the striking department, he proved his talents on the floor with a submission win against former champion Andrei Arlovski.
The bookmakers claim Aspinall might be at a slight disadvantage in this fight. However, the stats don’t really agree. Tom has an average fight-time of just 2:45, landing 7.19 significant strikes a minute. Essentially, he gets things done quicker, causing Tom to look more dangerous on paper than his opponent. You also can’t forget that this is a home turf fight for the prodigy who trains with Team Kaobon.
| Alexander Volkov | vs | Tom Aspinall |
|---|---|---|
| 33 | Age | 28 |
| 43 | Fights | 13 |
| 34 | Wins | 11 |
| 9 | Losses | 2 |
| 22 | KO’s | 8 |
| 3 | Subs | 3 |
| 6′ 7 | Height (feet) | 6′ 5 |
| 81 | Reach (inches) | 78 |
| 263.00 | Weight (lbs) | 245.99 |
| Win | Last Fight | Win |
Paddy Pimblett vs. Kazula Vargas Fight Odds
This matchup is a featherweight bout between two UFC newcomers looking to prove their worth. Paddy Pimblett made his debut in September, and Kazula Vargas has fought three times since entering the UFC in the latter half of 2019.
Paddy Pimblett is riding high from his opening victory against Luigi Vendramini. The young Brit knocked out the Brazilian in the first round to make his stamp on the division early in his career.
The Liverpudlian that trains with Next Generation UK will enter this contest as a big favorite. Pimblett – the former Cage Warriors Lightweight champion, is on a three-fight winning streak, with all these victories coming in the first round.
Despite being the younger of the two, Paddy has four more professional MMA fights than Vargas and enters with a 2-inch reach advantage.
Kazula Vargas is a Mexican southpaw fighter that trains with the UFC Performance Institute. Vargas lost his first two fights since his debut due to disqualification for kneeing Brok Weaver in the head while on the floor.
The Mexican overcame the sportsbook’s odds in his last win against Zhu Rong. He entered this fight at +215 but dominated the fight and won by unanimous decision.
Vargas, just like Pimblett, is not afraid to risk getting things finished early. He has made some statements to the press saying this fight will be over in the first round. He has some history to back up those statements, too, as he has proven he is a dangerous fighter a bunch of times. Winning plenty of his fights with explosive knockouts. Victory for either of these fighters in London could set up a big-name battle next.
| Paddy Pimblett | vs | Kazula Vargas |
|---|---|---|
| 27 | Age | 36 |
| 20 | Fights | 16 |
| 17 | Wins | 12 |
| 3 | Losses | 4 |
| 5 | KO’s | 7 |
| 8 | Subs | 3 |
| 5′ 10 | Height (feet) | 5′ 8 |
| 73 | Reach (inches) | 71.5 |
| 161.80 | Weight (lbs) | 155.00 |
| Win | Last Fight | Win |
Arnold Allen vs. Dan Hooker Fight Odds
This featherweight bout will see Arnold Allen take on the newcomer to the weight division, Dan Hooker. Both are closely matched and ranked seventh (Allen) and eighth (Hooker).
Arnold Allen is riding high on his eight-fight win streak and looks unstoppable. That being said, he hasn’t fought in almost a year, with his last win coming against Sodiq Yusuff back in April 2021.
The Englishman has only ever had one professional loss that came in 2014 when he fought in Cage Warriors. Arnold will enter the bout with a higher striking output with 4.9 significant strikes per minute compared to 2.96 from Allen.
Dan Hooker is dropping down in weight to take this fight after competing as a lightweight for the last five years. The New Zealander has an 8-4 record at the 155lb weight class and went 3-3 when he was last a featherweight from 2014-2016.
The odds are pretty even on who will win this bout on the night. However, Hooker has some things working for him – he has a five-inch reach advantage, much more experience, and an 81% finishing rate.
| Arnold Allen | vs | Dan Hooker |
|---|---|---|
| 28 | Age | 32 |
| 18 | Fights | 32 |
| 17 | Wins | 21 |
| 1 | Losses | 11 |
| 5 | KO’s | 10 |
| 4 | Subs | 7 |
| 5′ 8 | Height (feet) | 6′ 0 |
| 70 | Reach (inches) | 75.5 |
| 145.00 | Weight (lbs) | 156.00 |
| Win | Last Fight | Loss |
Shamil Abdurakhimov vs. Sergei Pavlovich Fight Odds
This is an all-Russian heavyweight bout between two six-foot-three giants. Abdurakhimov, who is coming off the back of two recent losses, and Pavlovich, who has been away from the Octagon for more than two years, will meet in the Octagon.
Shamil was initially supposed to face Aspinall on this card, but the fight was rebooked. Abrek, as he is known, comes in as the underdog after his recent losses; he last fought at UFC 266, where Chris Daukaus knocked him out.
This could likely be the 40-year-old’s last fight unless we see him defy the odds. Abdurakhimov will need to overcome his opponent’s 8-inch reach and 11 year age gap with some brute force. Otherwise, we might see a retirement announcement.
Pavlovich has also had a lot of time outside of the Octagon but comes in as the younger of the two by far and has a much cleaner record. In fact, the fellow Russian has lost just one defeat in his career.
Sergei’s last two wins came in the form of first-round stoppages, and even his only loss was over in one round. So he certainly doesn’t wait around and feel out his opponents. A win here for Pavlovich could see him enter a top spot in the rankings.
| Shamil Abdurakhimov | vs | Sergei Pavlovich |
|---|---|---|
| 40 | Age | 29 |
| 26 | Fights | 15 |
| 20 | Wins | 14 |
| 6 | Losses | 1 |
| 9 | KO’s | 11 |
| 4 | Subs | 0 |
| 6′ 3 | Height (feet) | 6′ 3 |
| 76 | Reach (inches) | 84 |
| 235.00 | Weight (lbs) | 257.00 |
| Loss | Last Fight | Win |
Nikita Krylov vs. Paul Craig Fight Odds
This light heavyweight fight will showcase two Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu specialists. Nikita Krylov will enter as the slight favorite despite losing his last fight to Magomed Ankalaev over a year ago.
Regardless of their differences in form, Krylov is still the higher-ranked of the pair. While the Ukrainian has alternating wins and losses, he has only ever lost to the best in the division, including current champion Glover Teixeira.
Paul Craig has managed to win four of his last five bouts, with his victories all coming in the way of stoppages. In his most recent fight against Jamahal Hill, Paul broke his opponent’s arm and finished him with some nasty elbows.
The Scot will have plenty of home support in the United Kingdom and is relatively evenly matched with Nikita: both are the same height and have almost the same reach. Therefore, we could easily see an upset on the weekend in this bout.
| Nikita Krylov | vs | Paul Craig |
|---|---|---|
| 30 | Age | 34 |
| 35 | Fights | 20 |
| 27 | Wins | 15 |
| 8 | Losses | 4 |
| 10 | KO’s | 3 |
| 15 | Subs | 12 |
| 6′ 3 | Height (feet) | 6′ 3 |
| 77.5 | Reach (inches) | 76 |
| 205.00 | Weight (lbs) | 205.00 |
| Loss | Last Fight | Win |
Gunnar Nelson vs. Takashi Sato Fight Odds
This welterweight bout was a last-minute addition to the card, with both fighters getting just 12 days’ notice of the matchup. It will be a comeback battle for these fighters, with both Nelson and Sato coming from poor form.
Gunnar Nelson was scheduled to fight Claudio Silva, who had to withdraw due to sustaining an injury. This is a clash between Jiu-Jitsu and Striking, with Nelson winning seven of his eight wins via submission.
After a two-year hiatus, the Icelandic Gunni comes in as a huge favorite with a 92% finishing rate and will be eager to prove his worth in the UFC.
Takashi has not faired well against other Jiu-Jitsu experts, losing to Belal Muhammed and Miguel Baeza via submissions. Nevertheless, he is dangerous on his feet and has some impressive knockouts to his name, including a 48-second win against Jason Witt.
The Japanese Sato will definitely want to keep things standing and end things early to win. He comes in with a slight reach advantage and the slightly younger fighter and has a proven record of being able to finish fights at a moments’ notice.
| Gunnar Nelson | vs | Takashi Sato |
|---|---|---|
| 33 | Age | 31 |
| 23 | Fights | 20 |
| 17 | Wins | 16 |
| 5 | Losses | 4 |
| 3 | KO’s | 11 |
| 13 | Subs | 2 |
| 5′ 11 | Height (feet) | 5′ 10 |
| 72 | Reach (inches) | 73 |
| 170.00 | Weight (lbs) | 170.00 |
| Loss | Last Fight | Loss |
Preliminary Fights
- Jai Herbert vs. Ilia Topuria
- Muhammad Mokaev vs. Cody Durden
- Mike Grundy vs. Makwan Amirkhani
- Molly McCann vs. Luana Carolina
- Jack Shore vs. Timur Valiev
- Cory McKenna vs. Elise Reed
- Nathaniel Wood vs. Liudvik Sholinian
Based in California, James William writes about golf, tennis, UFC and the (sometimes complicated) world of betting on sports. A big lover of live poker, James also takes care of casino reviews for Vegas-Odds.com.
