Tom Aspinall’s first heavyweight title defense ended in controversy when his fight against Ciryl Gane was declared a no contest due to eye pokes. Aspinall, who last fought in July 2024 where he defeated Curtis Blaydes in just over a minute, faced challenges leading up to the fight with Gane. Originally set to fight Jon Jones, the former UFC champion retired before committing to face Aspinall for a unification bout.
In a highly anticipated match, Aspinall faced Gane, his toughest opponent on paper. However, the fight was cut short in the first round when a referee stopped the fight due to an unintentional eye poke on Aspinall, resulting in a no contest and Aspinall retaining his title.
Following the incident, Aspinall was taken to the hospital for further evaluation. Dana White, the UFC president, expressed interest in rebooking the heavyweight clash for a rematch. In another fight on the card, Mackenzie Dern became the new undisputed women’s strawweight champion after a grueling battle with Virna Jandiroba. Other notable wins included Umar Nurmagomedov’s victory over Mario Bautista and Alexander Volkov defeating Jailton Almeida. Aleksandar Rakic and Azamat Murzakanov kicked off the main card with Murzakanov securing a first-round knockout victory.