UFC CEO Dana White revealed that heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall would've been fighting Alex Pereira at the White House on Sunday had Aspinall been healthy.
"100%. That would've been the fight if he was (fit to compete)," White told TNT Sports' Adam Catterall.
"A lot of our champions are hurt right now. There's a lot of things you have to deal with when you're making these matches, with timing and everything else going on. ... But yeah, it would've been Tom."
Aspinall has been sidelined since UFC 321 last October when he suffered an eye injury in a no-contest against Ciryl Gane. In his absence, Pereira and Gane are scheduled to fight for the interim heavyweight title in the co-main event of this weekend's historic event in Washington. Pereira, the former middleweight and light heavyweight champion, is moving up to heavyweight for the first time.
Aspinall, who underwent surgery on both of his eyes in February, still doesn't have a time frame for his return. However, the UFC surely hopes to book Aspinall against the Pereira-Gane winner later in 2026.
"This is a great fight that obviously means a lot in the heavyweight division," White said of Pereira-Gane.
Lightweight champion Ilia Topuria is slated to make his first title defense against interim champ Justin Gaethje in the main event of UFC Freedom 250, which will feature a total of seven fights.
