Another former UFC fighter has come out questioning Tom Aspinall following UFC 321.
This past weekend, Aspinall became the talk of the MMA world, but not for the reasons he probably wanted. In the first round of his heavyweight title defense against Ciryl Gane at UFC 321, Gane delivered a nasty eye poke to Aspinall, who was unable to continue, leading to a no-contest, and many dissatisfied fans. Since then, throngs of former fighters have come out on both sides of the incident, either supporting Aspinall as the victim of a foul or questioning his decision not to continue. And former champion T.J. Dillashaw falls firmly in the latter category.
“Tom Aspinall is one of those, like, hit you with power, charge you, knock you out [kind of guys], and Ciryl Gane is choosing his shots, circling outside that foot,” Dillashaw said on the JAXXON podcast. “We’re in that open stance again, and you see him on the outside, which is lining up his power, closer for his jab. Just a little more calculated than Tom Aspinall was, and I really believe that’s why Aspinall didn’t come back from that eye poke.”
Though it was early in the fight, Gane had a strong opening round against Aspinall, which led to accusations from some that the heavyweight champion was looking for a way out against an opponent who was making life difficult. And while Dillashaw acknowledges Gane fouled Aspinall, he questions the seriousness of the injury.
“First and foremost, it was a foul, and Ciryl Gane is the one to blame for it,” Dillashaw said. “But, from the optics, and the way that it looked, his eye was closed when he got poked in it. He was saying he couldn’t see, and he wasn’t even trying to open his eye to see if he could see. Obviously, I have no idea, I’m not there.
“But you see the pictures afterwards, and his eye looks fine. I’ve seen a whole finger go into someone’s eye, and they keep fighting. So, I don’t know. It’s all speculation, but I feel like he might have taken the easier way out. It’s a no-contest; he gets to come back, he gets paid $3 million. Come back and do it again.”
That seems to be the plan at this stage. UFC CEO Dana White said the promotion intends to book the rematch between Aspinall and Gane as soon as possible. And according to Dillashaw, that may work out for Aspinall and allow him to be better prepared this next time around.
“His athleticism and, like, how well he’s able to keep the fight in his distance, and control distance, and keep his shots firing,” Dillashaw said when asked what Aspinall underestimated. “Aspinall has never been out of the first round. He bum-rushes you, hits you with power, puts you out. Wasn’t going that way, and you get a way out where you’re still the champion, and you still get paid, and you still get to do it again.
“I don’t know. Just the optics of it, the way that he got poked with his eyes closed, and just like not even trying to open his eyes to really see, and the doctor’s like his eye looks fine. It just didn’t look good. Obviously, I don’t want someone to fight impaired, but at the same time, it just looks too fishy.”
Dillashaw is a former two-time UFC bantamweight champion who was infamously stripped of his title after testing positive for EPO in 2019. He retired from MMA in 2022.
Denied. Jake Matthews’ appeal denied, commission issues statement upholding Neil Magny’s win at UFC Perth.
White House. UFC owner Ari Emanuel credits Dana White for UFC White House card, addresses political climate ahead of event.
Return. Larissa Pacheco sends message to Dana White after PFL departure: ‘It’s time to come back home.’
Reputation. Muhammad Mokaev ‘upset’ his reputation was nearly ruined after UFC painted him as ‘a bad guy.’
Comeback. Bryan Battle: ‘I’m still the only motherf*cker who’s got to make a comeback without f*cking losing a fight’.
100 years. ‘This is the start of eternity’: Gracie family celebrates a century of jiu-jitsu in Brazil.
Muhammad Mokaev interview.
The best fights from Contender Series season 9.
Michael Bisping on how to fix eyepokes.
SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE
Sean O’Malley talking about eyepokes.
Aljo and Merab rolling to see who is the GOAT (Dominick Cruz must’ve been busy).
Why Justin Gaethje doesn’t wrestle.
Dillashaw saying Aspinall took the easy way out is hilarious. Also, saying he doesn’t want people to fight compromised when this man wasted everyone’s time by fighting Aljo with one arm and not telling anyone. What a guy.
If you find something you’d like to see in the Morning Report, hit up @AlexanderKlee or @JedKMeshew on Twitter and let us know about it. Also, follow MMAFighting on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and like us on Facebook.
Subscribe to my channel
