Aspinall-Gane ends in no-contest due to eye poke

Tom Aspinall retained the UFC heavyweight title Saturday after his fight against Ciryl Gane ended in a no-contest.

Gane accidentally poked Aspinall in both eyes, forcing a stoppage at 4:35 of the first round after Aspinall told cageside doctors he couldn't see. The bout served as the main event of UFC 321 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

During his postfight interview, Aspinall expressed frustration with the fans in attendance.

"I just got f-----g poked knuckle deep in the eyeball," Aspinall said. "What the f--k? Why are you booing? What am I supposed to do about it? I didn't do the f-----g poke. I can't see."

He added: "This is bullshit. The fight was just getting going. Complete bullshit. I'm pissed off."

Aspinall-Gane is the second UFC title fight ever to be ruled a no-contest and the first to immediately end in a no-contest at the event. Jon Jones' heavyweight title win over Daniel Cormier in July 2017 was later overturned after Jones failed a drug test.

UFC CEO Dana White said at the postfight press conference that the promotion plans to book a rematch.

Saturday's main event was competitive up until the premature finish, with Gane outlanding Aspinall 30-27 in total strikes. Aspinall went 0-for-1 in takedown attempts.

Gane apologized for the unintentional foul.

"I feel sorry," Gane said. "I'm very sorry about that, for the crowd, for the fans. I'm sorry for Tom Aspinall. I'm sorry for myself. We put a lot of energy into this fight, so I'm really disappointed. But this is the sport. This is life."

Despite not winning, Aspinall defended the title for the first time since being promoted to undisputed champion earlier this year when Jon Jones retired. The 32-year-old Englishman is now riding a four-fight unbeaten streak. His only UFC loss came in 2022 after he suffered a knee injury 15 seconds into the fight.

Gane, a former interim heavyweight champion, challenged for the undisputed title for the third time, after losing to Francis Ngannou in 2022 and Jones in 2023. The 35-year-old Frenchman is unbeaten in his last three Octagon appearances.