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Tom Aspinall’s return to the octagon in Abu Dhabi did not go as planned on Saturday night, as his fight with Cyril Gane quickly ended after an accidental poke in the eye.
In fact, Gane punched both of Aspinall’s eyes late in the first round, ultimately leading to the no-contest in the evening’s main event.
But Aspinall saying he couldn’t continue the fight led to boos from the crowd and widespread debate from fans and pundits, including former UFC fighter and current ESPN analyst Chael Sonnen.
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Britain’s Tom Aspinall reacts after being hit in the eye while fighting France’s Ciryl Gane during their UFC heavyweight title fight at UFC 321 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi early on October 26, 2025. (Giuseppe CACACE / AFP)
“Getting poked in the eye is illegal, but fighting with one eye is very common,” Sonnen said on ESPN’s 321 postgame show. “The opponent tries to hit you in the eye, he tries to give you a bloody nose. So that part, it has a question mark for guys like Anthony. [Smith] and me. We try to be polite. We’re trying to be gracious, but in all honesty, you’re the heavyweight champion of the world. Sometimes you have to fight with one eye.”
The video replay showed Gane clearly putting two fingers in Aspinall’s eyes, although the heavyweight champion was holding an ice pack to his right eye after the match. He appeared heated during his post-match interview with Daniel Cormier.
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“Guys, I just got punched in the eyeball. What the hell are you doing, why are you booing? What am I supposed to do about it, I didn’t do the shot. I can’t see! This is bull—-. The fight was just beginning. Complete bull—-.”
Aspinall added that he could “barely open his eyes”.
France’s Ciryl Gane punches England’s Tom Aspinall in the UFC heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 321 event at the Etihad Arena on October 25, 2025 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
While some wanted to see Aspinall continue fighting, fellow MMA fighter Sean O’Malley defended him due to how dangerous Gane was.
“You’re the UFC heavyweight champion of the world, you just took a really bad poke in the eye and you’re fighting a very dangerous kickboxer. A very dangerous kickboxer. It’s hard to stand in front of a human being with that level of skill and fight him with two eyes. Now you’re illegally poked in the eye – it wasn’t a right hand that broke his eye socket. [bone]his eyes swell and he can no longer see. It’s different. …Tom Aspinall would fight to overcome this. »
At the time of the incident, Gane appeared to be giving Aspinall all he could handle, as Aspinall’s nose was bloody before the double hit. And since it was a title fight, the crowd and everyone involved at the UFC would have loved to see a proper ending.
Britain’s Tom Aspinall reacts after being hit in the eye while fighting France’s Ciryl Gane during their UFC heavyweight title fight at UFC 321 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi early on October 26, 2025. (Giuseppe CACACE / AFP)
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Aspinall, the 32-year-old Englishman, had not been in the octagon since July 2024, when he dropped Curtis Blaydes a minute into the first round. Aspinall earned redemption for losing just 15 seconds from his previous fight against Blaydes in July 2022 after injuring his knee on a kick.
Aspinall is 15-3 in his UFC career with 11 knockouts, and he has never gone to the third round in any of his fights.
