Tom Aspinall announced late Sunday that he has officially relinquished his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) heavyweight title due to ongoing complications with the heavyweight championship. he suffered brutal eye injuries against Cyril Gane at UFC 321 in October 2025.
Even worse, Aspinall revealed that he was seemingly nearing its long-awaited returnn and had agreed on a date for the fight before another accident further damaged his right eye.
“Everything you read in the media is just noise. People create their own narratives. This is the truth: ongoing complications with my eyes mean that I cannot currently be medically cleared to fight,” Aspinall wrote in a lengthy statement.
“I’ve had a number of surgeries, accidents and infections and I’ve been doing everything I can to get back to racing,” he continued. “I had previously agreed on a date for the fight and was back in sparring feeling great and ready to compete when the accident caused damage to my right eye. This means more time away from the sport and now the timing of my return is unclear.”
With no timetable for when doctors will clear him, Aspinall decided to keep the heavyweight division up.
“I have now made the decision to relinquish the heavyweight title,” Aspinall wrote. “I asked the UFC to let me make this statement because I don’t want to hold up the heavyweight division. I know what it’s like to have your career put on hold and I want other fighters to have a chance to compete for the title.”
The announcement comes just one day after the UFC CEO Dana White it was revealed that the promotion’s plan was to discuss Aspinall’s championship status.
“We’ll definitely talk about it,” White said at Zuffa Boxing’s post-fight press conference. “Valentina doesn’t want to tie up the division, and I assume Tom feels the same way. I don’t know personally where she stands with all the health, but we should figure that out soon.”
Aspinall has not competed since his first undisputed heavyweight title defense against Gane at UFC 321. The fight is over first round “No Contest” after Gane poked Aspinall in both eyes, leaving the Englishman unable to continue.
Aspinall He underwent several surgeries to repair the damage. He said UFC officials, including Hunter Campbellwho has been kept informed throughout the process and has seen medical tests and information about his injuries.
The 33-year-old also made it crystal clear that losing the championship doesn’t mean he’s giving up.
“I’m absolutely gutted. I’ve been chasing this dream since I was 10,” Aspinall wrote. “I’m not done yet. Walking away from the title is not walking away from the sport or the dream. I will continue to do everything I can to get well, recover and return to competition as soon as possible.”
Aspinall also expressed his disappointment that the problems that sidelined him stemmed from mistakes he made in his fight with Gane.
“What makes this especially difficult is that many of the complications I’m dealing with are the result of mistakes that changed my career,” Aspinall wrote. “Fighters rely on officials to enforce the rules and protect us in these moments, and the consequences today are difficult to deal with.”
Aspinall ends his undisputed championship run without registering an official victory as champion. His lone defense against Gane ended in the aforementioned No Contest. Before becoming the undisputed champion follows Jon Jones retiring, Aspinall defended the interim title knocking out Curtis Blaydes in just 60 seconds at UFC 304 in July 2024.
With Aspinall out, Gane currently holds the Interim Heavyweight Championship after the stoppage Alex Pereira at UFC Freedom 250 in June.
The UFC has yet to announce what will happen to the vacant heavyweight title.
