Jon Jones taunts Tom Aspinall as old rival gives up UFC title

Tom Aspinall's heavyweight title reign ends in heartbreak as an eye injury forces him to vacate the UFC belt.

Tom Aspinall has relinquished the UFC heavyweight championship following a prolonged absence from the octagon due to a severe eye injury sustained against Ciryl Gane. The decision brings a frustrating halt to his title reign and prompted immediate reaction from division rival Jon Jones. Organisation officials had previously weighed whether to formally strip him of the belt before the official vacancy was confirmed.

• Tom Aspinall suffered a serious eye injury during a bout against Ciryl Gane.
• The fighter remained inactive within the promotion for nearly a year prior to giving up the championship.
• Jon Jones publicly taunted the British fighter following the announcement of the vacant title.
• The promotion previously evaluated options regarding whether to forcibly strip the heavyweight belt.

Timeline

1. Sep 13Reports emerge that the UFC is exploring whether to strip Tom Aspinall of his heavyweight title.
2. Sep 14Tom Aspinall officially vacates the UFC heavyweight title due to his persistent eye injury.
3. Sep 15Jon Jones publicly taunts Aspinall following the relinquishment of the championship belt.

In this story

Covered by 2 outlets

• The IndependentJon Jones taunts Tom Aspinall as old rival gives up UFC title2w ago · open ↗
• Al JazeeraTom Aspinall vacates UFC heavyweight title due to eye injury2w ago · open ↗