Ringside footage shows Tom Aspinall in tears following brutal knockout at UFC Paris

English UFC champion Tom Aspinall was left emotional after watching teammate Ante Delija secure his first UFC win in Paris on Saturday night.

The Croatian secured a first-round knockout against Marcin Tybura with a brutal flurry of punches which saw the referee call the contest off.

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Delija is one of Aspinall‘s sparring partners, and the Englishman made the journey across the English Channel to Paris to watch his teammate, and they both got emotional after the former’s win was confirmed.

The cameras immediately panned to Aspinall, and he was seen jumping up and down for joy, before becoming teary.

Explaining his emotion, the heavyweight supremo said: “Because it means so much to him.

“He’s a great guy, an awesome guy, he’s been waiting his whole life for that, it was awesome.”

Meanwhile, for debutant Delija , his emotions also got the better of himself as he immediately collapsed to his knees, with the tears instantly flowing.

His victory was a huge moment for Delija having had 32 fights as an MMA fighter across his career before finally making his UFC debut.

And the 35-year-old instantly made up for lost time as he knocked out his opponent inside the opening round.

Delija was a PFL heavyweight champion, so his stock within MMA is very high, and clearly, Aspinall is a huge fan.

The pair have been teammates for years, and Tybura – his opponent – is an experienced competitor.

However, he was no match for the aggression of his Croatian foe.

For Delija, he will be hoping that he would have impressed UFC chief Dana White, who was watching on from ringside.

And after the contest, an emotional Delija paid tribute to Aspinall.

He said: “My debut is here, but I worked twenty years for this moment. This is my dream.

“Thank you, France, thank you, my friends, who come to here to support me… Thank you for family, Aspinall… Thank you for my coach. Thank you for my wife.”

What’s next for Aspinall?

Aspinall will put his UFC heavyweight title on the line against Ciryl Gane at UFC 321.

The Brit won the belt in 2024 after beating Curtis Blaydes, but he has been stuck waiting for Jon Jones to decide what he’s doing.

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The American UFC legend retired in June, promoting Aspinall from interim champion to undisputed.

Since then, he’s yet to defend his belt, with Gane the only suitable opponent, with the pair exchanging blows shortly after the fight was confirmed.

However, ahead of UFC Paris, there was a press conference for Gane against Aspinall, and the Englishman was booed.

He then tried to speak and was clearly taken back when the boos got louder.

He said: “I mean, there was nobody else left to fight. I think if I can hit anybody, I can knock them out

“Ciryl is no exception. Obviously, there are some weaknesses in his ground game that we’ve seen, but I’m sure he’s improved.

“This is an MMA fight, it can go anywhere, and I’m sure we’ll be ready for anything.”