UFC star Josh Hokit accuses Tom Aspinall of faking eye injury, reveals reason behind claim

Josh Hokit has seemingly unleashed a verbal onslaught against former UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall.

The American has gone as far as suggesting that Aspinall is faking his eye injury issues, even highlighting why he feels that way. 

Tom Aspinall's MMA hiatus, Josh Hokit's UFC title shot against Ciryl Gane at UFC 334

Tom Aspinall captured the interim UFC heavyweight championship by knocking out Sergei Pavlovich back in 2023. The Englishman later attempted to face then-UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones in a title unifier, but Jones consistently maintained that the matchup didn't interest him and that he'd rather face a fellow megastar like Alex Pereira or retire.

In the meantime, Aspinall defended the interim belt by knocking out Curtis Blaydes in their rematch in July of 2024. 

Also, Jones announced his MMA retirement last year and is still believed to be in a semi-retired state, often teasing a comeback. Meanwhile, Aspinall was elevated to the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion status after "Bones" retired. Aspinall retained his title in an eye-poke-induced No Contest against Ciryl Gane last October. The eye pokes sidelined him, necessitated multiple eye surgeries, and recently caused him to vacate the heavyweight title. 

Currently, the unbeaten Josh Hokit is scheduled to take on Ciryl Gane, who won the interim title by knocking out Alex Pereira in June. Gane has been promoted to undisputed champion status after Aspinall vacated the title and departed for an MMA hiatus to recover from his eye issues. 

Hokit will face Gane for the UFC heavyweight championship in the main event of UFC 334 on November 14. 

Josh Hokit accuses Tom Aspinall of faking his eye injury issues, implies it could be to escape UFC deal and seek boxing paydays

During his latest conversation with Ariel Helwani on The Ariel Helwani Show, Josh Hokit criticized Tom Aspinall for playing it "safe" with his MMA career. "The Incredible Hok" lambasted Aspinall for wasting a considerable amount of time waiting for the Jon Jones fight and then ultimately sustaining eye pokes against Ciryl Gane. 

Hokit outlined an NSFW explanation of how he believes Aspinall feigns his eye injuries. He stated, "I don't think that sh** is real. I think he has his teammates, like, f**ting on his pillows type of sh**. And then be goes to sleep, gets pink eye, posts that sh** on Instagram." 

Alleging that Aspinall's oft-discussed series of eye surgeries were fake, he added, "He has fake surgery and all that other sh**. And then it's like, I think he's just trying to get out of his deal." 

Upon being questioned about whether he feels bad for Aspinall, Hokit alluded to the British combatant's highly publicized negotiations for bigger paydays from the UFC and signing boxing promoter Eddie Hearn as his advisor. He alleged that Aspinall was paying doctors to deem him unfit due to eye injuries, in order to help him escape his UFC contract and pursue potentially lucrative paydays in the sport of boxing. 

Hokit said, "That sh** is all fake, gang. It's not real... I don't know if he's paying doctors. But I think he's trying to get that bag in boxing." 

Watch Josh Hokit lambast Tom Aspinall below: 

Josh Hokit believes Tom Aspinall is faking his injury to try to get out of his UFC deal: “Honestly, I don’t even think that shit’s real. I think he has his teammates farting on his pillow, then he goes to sleep, gets pink eye, posts that shit on Instagram like, ‘Hey, everybody feel bad for me. I can’t fight still.’ He has fake surgery, all that other shit. I think he’s just trying to get out of his deal, if I’m being 100% honest. It’s all fake, gang. It’s not real. I don’t know if he’s paying doctors, but I think he’s trying to get that bag in boxing."

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) September 28, 2026