An Eye Poke Cut Short Aspinall
Tom Aspinall and Ciryl Gane fought to a no contest on October 25, 2025, in the UFC 321 main event at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. An accidental eye poke left Aspinall unable to continue, with the official stoppage recorded at 4:35 of the first round.
Gane’s jab shaped the early exchanges
Gane began sharply, using his jab to find the champion and bloody his nose. Aspinall also had attacking moments, but the opening round was still developing when the decisive interruption occurred.
Late in the round, Gane’s fingers caught Aspinall in the eye. The referee paused the action, and the champion’s difficulty continuing brought the heavyweight championship contest to an early end.
The official result left no winning fighter
The foul was ruled accidental and the bout was declared a no contest. Neither man received a victory, and the championship did not change hands at the event.
The brief action therefore offered no completed championship result. Gane’s promising start and Aspinall’s responses remained part of an unfinished first round rather than a decision or a stoppage earned through legal offense.
The co-main event produced the night’s new champion
The heavyweight interruption followed a completed strawweight championship fight between Mackenzie Dern and Virna Jandiroba. Dern won a unanimous decision to capture that division’s vacant title.
UFC 321 consequently ended with very different outcomes in its two championship contests: a new strawweight titleholder and an unresolved heavyweight main event. Aspinall and Gane left Abu Dhabi without the decisive sporting conclusion their matchup had promised.
Sources
- UFC: championship results and interrupted opening round
- UFC: event date and official no-contest ruling
