Overview
- UFC CEO Dana White publicly said Tom Aspinall is still hurt and that, until told otherwise, the promotion will keep the heavyweight division active.
- Aspinall remains off the card after multiple eye injuries at UFC 321 and subsequent surgeries, and his new manager Eddie Hearn has said additional ophthalmological testing and athletic-commission approval are required before he can fight.
- Ciryl Gane won an interim heavyweight title while Aspinall has been sidelined, leaving the UFC to choose between a unification bout, another interim or a vacant-title solution to maintain the division's schedule.
- Aspinall’s move to add Matchroom’s Eddie Hearn to his management team has introduced negotiation friction with the UFC that could complicate timing and purse talks for any return or unification fight.
- The division’s instability follows Jon Jones’ retirement and Aspinall’s prolonged recovery, and the UFC’s decision to advance match plans could prompt contenders to press for title shots and force choices that affect fighters’ pay and career timing.