UFC Heavyweight Champion Tom Aspinall is still dealing with the effects of a blow to the eye he took in his title fight against Cyril Gane at UFC 321.
Aspinall (15-3) was hospitalized on Saturday after Gane (13-2) accidentally poked him in both eyes during an exchange in the first round. Aspinall was unable to continue and the fight was deemed the first no contest in UFC title fight history.
On Tuesday, Aspinall's father and head coach Andy provided worrying information about the 32-year-old's condition.
“This is not good,” Andy said in a video posted on Aspinall’s YouTube channel. “His right eye can't see anything. It's just grey. [Doctors] I checked him for words and he just didn't see anything. His left eye is 50%. It was about four letters [down the chart] and then he could not see the letters. So one is really very blurry and the other one doesn’t work.”
Andy told ESPN on Sunday that his son escaped “bone damage” in the area, but the team is undergoing further testing this week. Aspinall made no official statement after the fight fell through, but was visibly upset in the Octagon afterwards.
According to CEO Dana White, the UFC intends to reschedule the fight between Aspinall and Gane. However, a potential date for this change will have to wait as Aspinall and his team consider the long-term impact of the foul.
“I hope everything goes well,” the elder Aspinall said. “But that may not be the case.”
