Daniel Cormier explains why Tom Aspinall was right to not continue against Ciryl Gane in UFC title fight

Tom Aspinall has found support from several sections of the combat sports community, as he looks to end his eye-injury-induced hiatus and return to the Octagon. 

Former UFC light heavyweight and heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier has chimed in as an apparent supporter for Aspinall over his controversial fight against Ciryl Gane. 

Daniel Cormier explains why Tom Aspinall made the right choice by not continuing in his UFC championship fight against Ciryl Gane

Reigning UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall put his title on the line against Ciryl Gane in the headlining match of UFC 321 back in October of 2025. Many viewed the Englishman as a significant favorite to win, but Gane seemed to be the faster fighter of the two and bloodied Aspinall up with a few precise strikes. 

Nevertheless, Gane eye-poked Aspinall during a striking sequence in the high-octane first round, which incapacitated the champion, who chose not to continue. The fight thereby ended in an NC (No Contest), and Aspinall's title stayed with him.

A number of fans lambasted Aspinall for not fighting on, whereas others supported him by citing that the eye pokes were severe and left him with no choice but to stop. 

Taking to his official YouTube channel, UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier has alluded to UFC color commentator Joe Rogan's recent remarks in Aspinall's defense. Cormier indicated that a famous individual such as Rogan publicly lending support to Aspinall over the eye poke debacle was good. 

Rogan recently hosted former Glory Kickboxing heavyweight champion Rico Verhoeven on the JRE (Joe Rogan Experience) podcast. The duo defended Aspinall, whom Verhoeven has previously trained with, in the eye poke controversy. 

"DC" suggested that Aspinall was correct in choosing not to fight after the eye pokes compromised his vision. He stated: 

"Tom Aspinall made the right choice. He protected his heavyweight championship. Because who knows? You're standing in front of one of the most athletic, dynamic guys in the heavyweight division."

Cormier continued, "Who knows what would have happened had he continued to fight? And honestly, if I'm being completely honest, we can't judge the whole fight based on what we saw up to that point."

The fighter-turned commentator seemed to conjecture that Gane having early success against Aspinall likely also played a role in the Briton not risking fighting after the eye poke. He explained: 

"But to that point, Ciryl Gane was having a lot of success against Tom Aspinall. So maybe it's, like, 'Yo. Let's go regroup and figure this out.' I don't knock him (Tom Aspinall) for that. Because again, he's protecting something that's much bigger than most people have to protect." 

Watch Daniel Cormier discuss Tom Aspinall's decision to avoid continuing after the eye pokes in the Ciryl Gane matchup below (*comments at the 5:52-minute mark of the video): 

Tom Aspinall vs. Ciryl Gane 2 -- speculation abounds about the long-awaited UFC heavyweight title rematch

Tom Aspinall has spoken at length regarding the three eye surgeries and extensive rehabilitation he's had to undergo due to the eye pokes he sustained at the hands of Ciryl Gane.

The 33-year-old Manchester representative hasn't competed since, but he recently announced that he's recovered and ready to return. 

Meanwhile, France's Gane fought former UFC middleweight and light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira for the interim UFC heavyweight belt at UFC Freedom 250 in June. "Bon Gamin" beat the legendary Pereira by way of second-round TKO and captured the interim title.

The 36-year-old Parisian has vowed to defeat Aspinall and capture the undisputed heavyweight title in their rematch. 

Currently, the belief is that the UFC could officially announce the date for the title unification matchup between heavyweight champ Aspinall and interim titlist Gane. This is at a time when rumors are rife that they could clash at UFC 333 in Abu Dhabi on October 24.