Former UFC title challengers Chael Sonnen and Anthony Smith believe Tom Aspinall should have kept fighting at UFC 321.
Aspinall (15-3 MMA) looked to capture the first defense of his recently claimed undisputed heavyweight title earlier this afternoon in Abu Dhabi. The Briton was of course promoted to undisputed champion earlier this summer, after former title holder Jon Jones announced his abrupt retirement from the sport in June.
Standing in Aspinall’s way to cement his undisputed status was former title challenger and interim champion Ciryl Gane. ‘Bon Gamin’ entered today’s bout on a two-fight winning streak, having scored victories over Alexander Volkov (split decision) and Serghei Spivac (TKO) in his most recent Octagon appearances.
The highly anticipated heavyweight title fight began with Tom Aspinall coming out aggressively. However, despite the Briton’s clear desire to finish quickly, Ciryl Gane managed to keep his composure and then deliver a beautiful kick, followed by a 1-2 that broke the nose of the reigning title holder. Unfortunately, these important goals were followed by an accidental eye poke from the Frenchman, a foul that ultimately prevented Aspinall from continuing.
Some fans, and even some fellow fighters, were highly critical of Tom Aspinall’s choice to opt out of UFC 321. That same sentiment was apparently shared by former UFC title challengers turned analysts Chael Sonnen and Anthony Smith on tonight’s post-fight show.
Chael Sonnen and Anthony Smith think Tom Aspinall should have continued the fight 😬
“You’re the heavyweight champion, you have to fight with one eye sometimes… I’ve watched fights before, I know what it looks like. I knew he was ready.”
If you get stabbed in the eye and… pic.twitter.com/nnPXGUr3OG
— Happy Punch (@HappyPunch) October 26, 2025
“Getting poked in the eye is illegal, Brendan, but fighting with one eye is very common. The opponent is trying to hit your eye; he’s trying to beat you up and make your nose bleed. So that part of it does have a question mark for guys like Anthony and I,” said Chael Sonnen. “We try to be polite. We try to show grace, but honestly, you’re the heavyweight champion of the world. You have to fight with one eye sometimes.”
Sonnen continued:
“I thought the fight turned out to be a little bit tougher than Tom (Aspinall) might have expected. I have one problem with Tom, and it’s not his fault, it’s because he’s so damn good. But the reality is he knocked out six men in the first round. He’s never gone to a third round of a fight just for example. So the question is how are you going to respond when things get tough?”
Anthony Smith also shared some interesting thoughts on Tom Aspinall not continuing to fight:
“I’m not saying it’s Tom’s fault. And I’m not going to pretend I know how bad it is or not. I think Chael made a poetic point that you have to be used to it or willing to fight with one eye. I did it in Singapore. You never say ‘I can’t see’ if you want to continue fighting.”
Do you think Aspinall should have tried to move on at UFC 321?
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