UFC 321 went down last Saturday (Oct. 25, 2025) inside Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, leaving several fighters feeling the post-fight blues. Among them was Aleksandar Rakic, who suffered his fourth straight loss after he was knocked out by Azamat Murzakanov in the very first round (see it again here).
And Virna Jandiroba, who was defeated by Mackenzie Dern once again, this time to win the vacant women’s Strawweight strap. But which fighter is suffering from the worst post-fight hangover,
now a few days removed from the show?
Tom Aspinall.
Coming into his first-ever defense of his Heavyweight title, the hard-hitting Brit was anxious to get back into the swing of things after sitting out for the last 15 months hoping he would get a shot at facing Jon Jones. That never came after “Bones” opted to retire, so Aspinall had no other choice but to move on to the next big thing. And that came in the former of Ciryl Gane, who earned another shot at the title after two straight wins following his lightning-quick defeat at the hands of “Bones.”
From the get-go, both men came out swinging but it was Gane who was connecting cleaner as he ultimately bloodied up the champion from his nose. But with just 20 seconds remaining in the first round the action was halted after Gane inadvertently poked Aspinall in both eyes, which ultimately prompted the referee on duty to rule the bout a “No Contest” after the champ revealed he simply couldn’t see out of his damaged right eye.
And just like that the fight was over and Aspinall remained the champion, though it’s not the way he would’ve liked to fly back home with the belt. But while he gets to go home with his strap, Aspinall lost out on something much bigger: a huge money fight against the aforementioned Jon Jones.
“Bones” irritated Aspinall through most of 2025 with his refusal to accept a fight against him and ultimately walking away from the sport. But in true Jones fashion, he picked a perfect time to accept a call out from Alex Pereira. Indeed, “Bones” pulled out his electronic device, opened up X and accepted the invitation to a scrap at the White House in mid-2026.
If you know Jones, then you are accurate in believing he did that purposely after what he saw from Aspinall in Abu Dhabi, taking a soft jab at the 265-pound champion for not winning his fight, or for simply refusing to go on with a damaged eye. Whatever the reason, Jones timed it perfectly and kicked the big man while he was down.
Perhaps if he would’ve witnessed something special from the Brit like we’ve been accustomed to seeing, Jones would’ve take him up on his offer to a fight instead of accepting Pereira’s challenge. But through no fault of his own, Aspinall may have lost the “Bones” fight for good based on the unfortunate outcome of his first title defense.
We will never know if Jones would have done the same thing if Aspinall would’ve knocked Gane out cleanly to earn his first-ever title defense. But that’s the beauty — and frustrating — part of Jones’ social media antics.
For complete UFC 321 results, coverage and highlights click HERE.
