Tom Aspinall has formally relinquished the UFC heavyweight title after the serious eye injury he sustained in October 2025. The Briton suffered damage to both eyes, an injury that forced his previous bout to be waved off in the opening round, and his condition deteriorated sharply once more in the build-up to the rematch scheduled for UFC 334 on 14 November.
Ciryl Gane beat Alex Pereira in June at UFC 250 to claim the interim championship, the stand-in belt awarded when the reigning champion is unavailable, yet Dana White, the promotion's president, declined to elevate him to undisputed status. "Does that make him the undisputed champion? No, he still has to fight for the title," White insisted, ruling out any compromise. As things stand, the interim titleholder is being called out into the octagon by Pereira, Josh Hokit and Alexander Volkov, who sits at the top of the divisional rankings.
