Written by Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Tom Aspinall has his first assignment as the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion.
At UFC 321 on Oct. 25, Aspinall is set to defend his title against Ciryl Gane in the main event from Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. UFC CEO Dana White announced the fight on Tuesday.
It’s been a long wait for Aspinall to get back in action with his last fight happening back in July 2024 when he defended his interim heavyweight title with a blistering first-round finish over Curtis Blaydes. From there, Aspinall was just stuck playing the waiting game with hopes that he would eventually get to unify the titles with then heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
Sadly, Jones ultimately decided to retire from the sport, which gave Aspinall the promotion he wanted to become undisputed champ. Just two weeks after retiring, Jones announces plans to compete again but it was already too late when it comes to the title.
Aspinall now moves forward with a new goal and new opponent in mind as he competes for the first time in 15 months when he fights at UFC 321.
As for Gane, he’ll take a third stab at becoming an undisputed champion after coming up short in both of his previous attempts. He fell to Francis Ngannou in a grappling-heavy affair to start 2022 and then got submitted by Jones in March 2023.
Now riding a two-fight win streak including a razor-close decision over Alexander Volkov this past December, Gane is ready to return to the octagon with hopes that he can finally capture that elusive undisputed title.
Aspinall vs. Gane headlines the latest UFC pay-per-view card headed to Abu Dhabi with more fights expected to be announced in the coming weeks.