Gane Questions Aspinall's Toughness and Eye-Poke Impact After Title Elevation
The short version
- Gane was elevated to undisputed UFC heavyweight champion after Aspinall vacated the title
- Gane said his team believed Aspinall was mentally fragile before their UFC 321 bout
- Gane claimed the eye poke was not forceful despite how it looked
- Aspinall has had two surgeries on his right eye, which has yet to fully recover
- Gane is scheduled to defend the title against Josh Hokit at UFC 334
Undefeated heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane says Tom Aspinall was "mentally fragile" and downplays the eye poke that preceded Aspinall's title vacation.
Ciryl Gane, recently elevated to undisputed UFC heavyweight champion after Tom Aspinall vacated the title, has publicly criticized his former opponent's response to the eye poke that derailed Aspinall's career.
Speaking on Zack Nani TV, Gane said Aspinall was widely viewed as a dominant fighter but that his team had sensed mental fragility before their UFC 321 meeting in October 2025, pointing to Aspinall's post-fight celebrations and body language as signs.
Gane also downplayed the severity of the eye poke itself, saying that while it looked forceful, it did not feel forceful and that his hand was there mainly to keep his footing. He argued Aspinall had the right to stop the fight but went too far with his public statements afterward.
The Frenchman referenced his own eye poke from Derrick Lewis in their interim title bout at UFC 265, saying he saw double for several minutes but kept fighting without complaint.
Aspinall vacated the heavyweight title after another injury to his right eye in training, having undergone two surgeries with the cells in that eye yet to properly regenerate. Gane is now set to defend the undisputed heavyweight belt against Josh Hokit at UFC 334.