Tom Aspinall’s first title defence as undisputed UFC heavyweight champion ended in chaos — and weeks later, the fallout has turned into a war of words on social media.
The 32-year-old from Atherton was defending his belt for the first time against Cyril Gane at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi when the bout was halted late in the opening round.
Gane’s fingers appeared to go — in Aspinall’s own words — “knuckle-deep” into both of his eyes, leaving the champion unable to see or continue.
The fight was ruled a no-contest, frustrating fans, the UFC, and Aspinall himself.
“I felt like the fight was going okay,” he said post-fight on his YouTube channel. “It was going pretty much to plan. There was this big notion in the media before that I was just going to run through Cyril Gane.
“I might look like an idiot, sometimes I might talk like an idiot, but when it comes to fighting, I know what I’m talking about.”
“Cyril’s got really good defense, and he moves really, really well on his feet. I knew that I had to stand in range and take a few punches from Cyril to be able to land my own shots. We knew that was happening. Yeah, nosebleeds happen in a fight. Was he hitting me with a few jabs? Yes. Was I hitting him with a few shots as well? Yes. I thought it was going to be a five-round fight. I knew it was going to be a long and tough fight.”
While referee Jason Herzog ruled the eye poke accidental, Aspinall later said he believed Gane acted deliberately.
“When I watched it back, that’s when I really got the gist of what’s going on. The guy was trying to f***ing poke my eyes out, all the way through that round. Multiple exchanges, nearly every exchange that I could put him in danger, he had his fingers out, pointing toward my eyes. … The guy was cheating from the first second, and the way he wanted to win that fight was to have me compromised by cheating.”
In the aftermath, Aspinall was diagnosed with “significant bilateral Brown’s syndrome” — a rare and potentially career-threatening eye condition that prevents his eyes from moving upward correctly.
A medical report he shared confirmed the diagnosis and detailed “persistent double vision, reduced visual function, limited eye motility and substantial field loss.” Doctors are now weighing steroid injections or surgical intervention if symptoms don’t improve.
The Online Clash Reignites
Just as fans started to wonder when (or if) the rematch might happen, Gane posted an update from training — and lit the fuse all over again. He captioned the post: “Still no date or opponent yet… but we keep grinding and training hard before the holidays […] with my man @bambamtuivasa.”
Aspinall didn’t let that one slide. Hours later, he fired back publicly in the comments, writing: “No s**t there’s not a date yet. I’m not medically cleared to fight and about to have surgery thanks to your disgusting fingernails […] I’ll be back to smash your face in soon you cheat.”
The exchange sent fight fans into meltdown, reigniting the feud between the two heavyweights and drawing sharp lines between those who see Gane’s poke as a freak accident, those who believe Aspinall was wronged, and those who believe the champ should have continued fighting.
It’s not the first time the Brit has called out Gane, either. Following UFC 321, he captioned one of his own Instagram posts: “Coming to get my revenge on the big cheater.”
“I’m Not a F***ing Dummy”
Despite his fiery tone online, Aspinall has remained consistent about why he chose not to continue fighting that night.
“I didn’t continue, and I’ll tell you why I didn’t continue: because I’m not a f***ing dummy,” he said. “I’m not going to go out there and fight one of the best strikers in the world if I can’t see. I know, as an MMA fighter, things are going to happen in the fight that compromise you,” he said in another video update. “If you get double eye poked in both eyes and you’ve got no vision because of a foul, why should I carry on?
“So some dummy can look and say, ‘Oh yeah, Tom just got knocked out’? I ain’t going to fight if I can’t see anything because of a foul.”
He’s even admitted that surgery might be required, a step that could rule him out for all of 2026. But that hasn’t dampened his desire for revenge.
“I’m obviously very keen to get back and beat this guy up,” Aspinall said. “But I’ve got to be 100% right. So whenever the eye’s good to go, that’s when I’ll do it.”
What’s Next For The Heavyweight Champ?
For now, the focus is on recovery.
“We’ve got to see how it goes over the next few weeks,” Aspinall said on his channel. “Obviously that’s down to the specialists and stuff, but I’m not in the gym training at the moment. I’m not doing anything MMA-wise. I’m just following the doctor’s orders right now and seeing what happens with the health.”
For now, he’s been banned from training or fighting, leaving the heavyweight division in limbo.
Aspinall continues to undergo specialist consultations, sarcastically describing the process as “a lovely time, in and out of the hospital, having all kinds of different tests done to my eyes, speaking to specialists, speaking to surgeons, speaking to doctors.”
Whether Aspinall’s condition improves naturally or requires surgery, one thing is certain: when he’s finally cleared to fight, the rematch between him and Gane will be one of the most personal — and most anticipated — showdowns in UFC history.
Featured image credit: YouTube/TomAspinall/Instagram/@ciryl_gane (screenshots)
