Its Time For Tom Aspinall to Vacate the UFC Heavyweight Title
UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall has not competed since October 25, 2025, when he fought to a No Contest against Ciryl Gane in the main event of UFC 321.
During that fight, Aspinall was poked in the eye, which ended the fight in the first round due to an accidental foul.
At the time, it didn’t seem like a serious injury that would keep the Brit out for a year, but here we are, nearly a year and four eye surgeries later, Aspinall is still not healthy enough to return.
That’s why Aspinall needs to vacate his belt and let the UFC heavyweight division move on.
Valentina Shevchenko Just Vacated Her Title
Something similar just happened in the UFC women’s flyweight division, where long-time champion Valentina Shevchenko gave up her title.
Shevchenko was supposed to fight Natalia Silva in the main event of UFC 332, but she is injured and could miss up to one year.
So, she did the honorable thing and vacated her title, letting Silva and Wang Cong duke it out for the vacant belt in the UFC 332 headliner.
The UFC has already said that Shevchenko will get an immediate title shot upon her return to the Octagon, and they can do the same thing for Aspinall if he gives up his belt.
It’s the right thing to do.
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There are fighters such as Gane, the interim champ, Alex Pereira, Josh Hokit, Sergei Pavlovich, Alexander Volkov, and others who are waiting to fight for the undisputed UFC heavyweight title.
It’s not fair that Aspinall gets to just camp on his belt while the rest of the division has to wait around and see when and if he can return to full health, because there is no guarantee that his eye will ever heal properly.
Aspinall is a terrific fighter, and it is extremely frustrating for him to deal with the injury that he is dealing with right now.
At the same time, it’s not fair for the other fighters to sit around and wait for him to get back into the cage.
Therefore, it’s time that he vacates — and if he doesn’t, the UFC has to strip him.
If He Doesn’t Vacate, the UFC Should Strip Tom Aspinall
If Aspinall refuses to vacate his title, then the UFC will have no choice but to strip the belt from him.
At this point, it’s been almost a full year since Aspinall stepped inside the Octagon. By the time he is cleared to fight again and completes a training camp for his next title defense, it could be 1.5 years, or even getting on two years, by the time he fights again.
This simply isn’t fair for the rest of the UFC heavyweights, who are all trying to realize their own dreams and fight for the belt.
It really sucks that Aspinall got hurt, and it’s even worse that Gane is the one who is the interim champion right now, as he’s the one who poked Aspinall in the eye and injured him in the first place.
Unfortunately, injuries are a part of the game, and Aspinall is far from the first fighter who will lose his belt to an injury.
When Aspinall does return, he can fight for the belt, as he would still be the No. 1 contender for the UFC heavyweight title, and he would be well deserving of an immediate title shot.
But right now, the UFC cannot have him holding up the heavyweight division any longer, and it’s time that he loses his belt — either he does the honorable thing and vacates it willingly, or UFC president Dana White takes the decision out of his hands and strips the belt from his waist.
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This story was originally published by Lindys Sports on Sep 9, 2026, where it first appeared in the Other Sports section. Add Lindys Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.