Ciryl Gane opens up on eye poke against Tom Aspinall

Ciryl Gane has accepted responsibility for the eye poke that ended his undisputed heavyweight title fight against Tom Aspinall at UFC 320 last October. The bout was declared a no contest after Gane's fingers struck Aspinall in both eyes simultaneously during the opening round. Despite being given the full five minutes to recover, Aspinall was unable to continue.

Gane explained the sequence of events during a UFC Countdown appearance. He mistimed a kick aimed at Aspinall's midsection, prompting the British champion to surge forward. In attempting to create distance by pushing Aspinall back with an outstretched hand, Gane inadvertently made contact with his opponent's eyes. The Frenchman emphasized it was an unintentional mistake, though observers noted he appeared to be landing effective strikes before the accidental foul halted proceedings.

While Aspinall recovers from his injury, Gane has moved forward with an interim heavyweight title fight against Alex Pereira scheduled for the co-main event of the UFC White House card on June 14. Gane expressed confidence in defeating Pereira and later reclaiming the undisputed belt from Aspinall, framing the sequence as part of a larger mission: "I'm on a mission to win the undisputed belt. I'm gonna win this fight against Pereira. And I'm gonna go have my revenge against Tom Aspinall and claim my undisputed title." The interim belt bout will serve as a crucial stepping stone in the heavyweight division's restructuring while Aspinall continues his medical recovery.