6 hours ago
13
Tom Aspinall has vacated his UFC heavyweight title due to 'ongoing complications' with eye injuries.
The Englishman last fought in October last year, when his title defence against Ciryl Gane ended as a no-contest after multiple eye pokes.
Aspinall was subsequently diagnosed with a rare condition called Brown's syndrome in both eyes and has had multiple surgeries, but he is still not ready to compete.
He wrote on Instagram: 'I’m absolutely gutted. I’ve chased this dream since I was 10 years old.
'I’m not done. Stepping away from the title is not stepping away from the sport or the dream. I’ll continue doing everything I can to get healthy, get cleared and get back to competing as soon as possible.
'What makes this particularly difficult is that many of the complications I’m dealing with are a result of fouls that changed the course of my career. Fighters rely on officials to enforce the rules and protect us in those moments, and it’s hard to still be dealing with the consequences today.'
Tom Aspinall has vacated his UFC heavyweight title due to 'ongoing complications' with eyes injuries
He was diagnosed with a rare condition Brown's syndrome following an eye poke at UFC 321
He also said: 'Ongoing complications with my eyes mean I cannot get medically cleared to fight right now.
'I’ve had multiple surgeries, accidents and infections, and done everything possible to get back to competing.
'I had previously agreed to a fight date and was back sparring, feeling great and ready to compete when an accident caused further damage to my right eye. This means more time away from the sport, and right now, the timing of my return is unclear.'
He added: 'I’ve now made the decision to vacate the heavyweight title. I’ve asked the UFC to allow me to make this statement because I don’t want to hold the heavyweight division up. I know what it’s like to have your career put on hold and I want the other fighters to have the opportunity to compete for the title.'
Aspinall returned to training in June with a view to fighting Gane in September but the wait will have to go on.
In August, Aspinall rebuffed suggestions that he would leave the UFC.
Against Gane in October, Aspinall retained his UFC heavyweight title via no contest in an anticlimactic ending to the main event at UFC 321 that saw the Brit struggling to see and rushed to hospital.
He does intend to return to fighting in the UFC but is unable to at the moment
After four minutes of the first round of the fight in Abu Dhabi, as Aspinall attempted a kick, Gane went at his rival with a punch and inadvertently raked his fingers across his eyes. A five-minute timeout ensued, and the doctor stepped in.
Aspinall was spotted telling the doctor: 'I can't see,' with the doctor himself telling the referee that he had 'no immediate concerns about the globe'.
After four minutes of the five allocated, however, the fight was waved off as a no-contest.
'All that training for that,' Aspinall said. 'What the f*** is he doing?
'He got warned twice before it. Twice before it he got warned for it and he f***ing did it again.'
Gane, however, said: 'I didn't do it on purpose. I know what it's like to have an eye poke, because when I fought Derrick Lewis, I got an eye poke and I was seeing two of Derrick Lewis for a full round.
'During a bit of the round and the rest of the round, I saw two of Derrick Lewis. So I'm not going to say, he's a liar.'
Aspinall, who was sat with his eye strapped up, added: 'I could feel how deep it was in my eye. It feels like the back of my eyeball is hurting. It feels like someone's touched the back of my eyeball.
