Once upon a time, things were so straightforward for Aspinall. You only have to look at the timings of his UFC wins to comprehend the manner of his dominance: 45 seconds here, 60 there, 73 at a push. When things go well for Aspinall in the cage, they go very well<\/a>. <\/p>\n Yet fate has spliced sorrow between these successes: a knee injury in 2022 kept the Wigan fighter from doing what he loved for a year; another 15 months on the shelf ensued while he waited for a dream fight with Jon Jones, which never came; and this year, double eye surgery, just so Aspinall could resume a normal life<\/a> and carry out mundane tasks. <\/p>\n Still, these misfortunes have played a large part in forging the man beyond the fighter. <\/p>\n Enforced spells away from fighting have seen the 33-year-old hone his punditry skills and business acumen, and this year even brought his shock signing with Eddie Hearn\u2019s new talent agency (the boxing promoter is a bitter rival of UFC boss Dana White, making Aspinall\u2019s move deliciously intriguing).<\/p>\n Now, on The Inner Game, Aspinall and his friend Charlie Gibson pick the brains of 12 successful figures from all walks of life. Journalist Louis Theroux is one guest, rapper Aitch is another. TV presenter Paddy McGuiness appears, as does former boxing champion Tony Bellew.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery one of our guests is very successful in their own field,\u201d Aspinall tells the Independent, speaking over the phone while he does the afternoon school run \u2013\u00a0a near-impossible task during the early stages of his recent injury, which was inflicted by Ciryl Gane\u2019s eye pokes<\/a> in October.<\/p>\n \u201cI think every guest pretty much has the same mentality when it comes to how they deal with things. It\u2019s pretty interesting to listen to other people with different backgrounds, and to hear how we align on mentality. <\/p>\n \u201cWe had a fellow on there called Simon Squibb. He\u2019s an entrepreneur who asks, \u2018Do you have a dream?\u2019 You\u2019ll have seen his social videos.\u201d Indeed I have. Squibb approaches strangers on the street and asks how he can help them achieve their most-ambitious goals. <\/p>\n \u201cHe was really interesting for me, just because of the sacrifices he made and how he almost bet on himself in a lot of ways. You\u2019ve got to bet on yourself early and stick with it. I think he probably surprised me the most, just the stuff that he\u2019s been through.\u201d<\/p>\n Another element that stood out to Aspinall while making the podcast was the recurrence of impostor syndrome: the idea that you don\u2019t deserve the success you\u2019ve found. <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s mad, because you see successful people and automatically presume, \u2018They\u2019re levels above the normal person in how they\u2019re feeling,\u2019 but they\u2019re just not,\u201d Aspinall says. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of impostor syndrome going on; they feel anxious, and it was really interesting to see how they\u2019ve overcome it.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve always aimed to be a successful fighter, a successful champion, but no one\u2019s ever coached me on different aspects like… I have a bit more money than before, how to be in the public eye, stuff like that. You can use the fear and anxiety as a superpower to help you succeed; it\u2019s something I already knew myself<\/a>, but it\u2019s good to get reassurance on that. That was very affirming for me, to hear that from other people.\u201d<\/p>\n There might have been some anxiety in launching The Inner Game, so different as it is to Aspinall\u2019s main vocation. But while Aspinall expresses a desire to do further seasons, noting that he\u2019d \u201clike to go more into MMA\u201d, he also makes an honest admission: \u201cI think it was important that we get away from MMA and start to learn about other things as well.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously fighting for me is the No 1 thing, it always has been. I still absolutely love it, still want to be the best and all that stuff. But these interviews just kind of reinforced the mindset that I\u2019ve got, more than anything. You\u2019ve got to go all in and believe in yourself above everything else. That\u2019s something that I\u2019ll continue to do.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"UFC](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image00003.jpeg\")
UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall is now in the podcasting business (The Inner Game)<\/p>\n![\"Aspinall](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Aspinall-Louis-Theroux.jpeg\")
Aspinall with Louis Theroux (centre) and co-host Charlie Gibson (The Inner Game)<\/p>\n![\"Aspinall](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/2163999616...jpeg\")
Aspinall is the UFC heavyweight champion, although his last fight was marred by an eye injury (Getty)<\/p>\n