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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 ended quickly after an accidental hit to the eye.
In fact, Gane hit both of Aspinall’s eyes at the end of the first round, ultimately leading to the no-contest in the night’s main event.
But Aspinall saying he couldn’t continue the fight sparked boos from the crowd and widespread debate from fans and pundits alike, 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 Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi early on October 26, 2025. (Giuseppe CACACE / AFP)
“Getting hit in the eye is illegal, but fighting with one eye is very common,” Sonnen said on ESPN’s 321 postgame show. “The opponent is trying to hit you in the eye, he’s trying to break you and give you a bloody nose. So that part has a question mark for guys like Anthony.” [Smith] me too. We’re trying to be polite. We’re trying to show grace, but to be fair, you’re the heavyweight champion of the world. “Sometimes you have to fight with one eye.”
Replay video showed Gane clearly landing both fingers in Aspinall’s eyes, even though the heavyweight champion was holding an ice pack to his right eye after the bout. He appeared heated during his post-match interview with Daniel Cormier.
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“Guys, I just got poked up to my knuckles in the eyeball. What the fuck, why are you booing? What am I supposed to do about it? I didn’t make the hit. I can’t see! This is nonsense. The fight was just beginning. Complete nonsense.”
Aspinall added that he “could barely open his eye.”
Ciryl Gane of France punches Tom Aspinall of England in the UFC Heavyweight Championship fight during the UFC 321 event at Etihad Arena on October 25, 2025 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
While there were some who wanted to see Aspinall continue fighting, fellow MMA fighter Sean O’Malley defended him due to how dangerous Gane is.
“You are the UFC heavyweight world champion, you just took a very hard hit in the eye and you are fighting a very dangerous kickboxer. A very dangerous kickboxer. It is difficult to stand in front of a human being with that high level of skills and fight him with two eyes. Now, you are illegally hit in the eye; it was not a right hand that broke his orbital. [bone]His eye swells and he cannot see. That’s different. …Tom Aspinall would fight to overcome it.”
At the time of the incident, Gane appeared to be giving Aspinall all he could handle, as Aspinall’s nose was bloodied before the double punch. And being that this was a title fight, the public and everyone involved in 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 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 knocked down Curtis Blaydes one minute into the first round. Aspinall earned redemption for losing just 15 seconds in his previous fight with Blaydes in July 2022 after suffering a knee injury from a kick.
Aspinall is 15-3 in his UFC career with 11 knockouts and has never reached the third round in any of his fights.
