Ciryl Gane is keeping his sights firmly fixed on a future rematch with Tom Aspinall, despite how their initial championship encounter concluded.
The pair’s previous UFC heavyweight title clash ended in a no contest after the British fighter suffered an eye poke. Unable to compete further due to the resulting injury, Aspinall subsequently vacated the title.
Gane secured an interim belt by defeating Alex Pereira and was later elevated to full champion status. The French fighter is scheduled to defend that belt against Josh Hokit at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, a bout that could ultimately clear the path toward a renewed meeting with Aspinall.
Reflecting on the premature end to their first meeting, Gane acknowledged that the circumstances left no winners.
“I hope to. Unfortunately the outcome of this [first] fight was not a good way for me, for him, for everyone. So I hope he’s got a bit better from his injury. But it’s important for him to recover first,” Gane said.
Meanwhile, fellow UFC heavyweight Mario Pinto has voiced support for Aspinall’s eventual return to the Octagon following his title vacancy.
Recalling the momentum of their initial meeting before the stoppage, Gane said that the early exchanges provided plenty of intrigue.
“It was a great first round for me, I think. But it was just the first round so we don’t know exactly what’s going to happen for the rest of the fight. So it was a really interesting fight, it’s really hard to predict… But I started very well,” Gane said.
Following the incident, Aspinall openly criticized Gane, going so far as to label him a “cheater” in the wake of the accidental foul.
The heavyweight champion addressed those remarks directly, suggesting the accusation stemmed from frustration rather than reality.
“I was a little bit disappointed but he tries to protect himself maybe with this strategy. But unfortunately this happens in MMA so I don’t understand,” Gane said.
“This is an accident,” he added. “I’m not a guy that disrespects fighters, I like to respect everyone.”
