LONDON, ENGLAND – MARCH 06: Tom Aspinall UFC heavyweight champion and Eddie Hearn chairman of Matchroom Sport shake hands at Battersea Power station on March 06, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images)
Tom Aspinall was supposed to be the UFC’s Next Big Mega-Star. He’s fast, explosive, and a well-rounded Mixed Martial Artist. The Englishman tore through the UFC heavyweight division in a fashion unparalleled by anything we’ve seen in the UFC’s heavyweight division. Analysts, fans, and media around the world were speculating whether Tom Aspinall was the man who could defeat the legendary Jon Jones. But Tom Aspinall’s path to greatness has been derailed by a series of unfortunate events involving politics, cheating, and career-altering injuries.
Aspinall played the company throughout the situation with Jon Jones. He served as the UFC’s longest tenured interim champion in UFC history, at 588 days, defended the belt against Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304, then was inactive for 455 days waiting to fight Jon Jones for the undisputed title. The fight, of course, never took place. In his return at UFC 321, Ciryl Gane essentially gauged Tom Aspinall’s eyes, rendering him unable to continue.
Following Aspinall’s injury, Dana White made a statement that may have changed the trajectory of Tom Aspinall, the heavyweight division, and the UFC as a whole. .
“There probably will be a lot more interest in the rematch. “I mean, he [Ciryl] had Tom bloodied up. And, you know, Tom didn’t want to continue in the fight, so. The rematch is very interesting.” White told reporters at UFC 321 Post Fight Press Conference
In an environment where fans and media criticize and harass athletes online, Aspinall felt disrespected by the UFC and the MMA community for being criticized for not continuing the fight with Gane. Whether UFC CEO Dana White meant to imply that Aspinall quit the fight against Ciryl Gane, Tom Aspinall certainly took it that way. Five months later, Aspinall has not spoken with Dana White since the incident at UFC 321. The harsh online reaction and the UFC’s lack of support left Aspinall devastated.
I love martial arts, I absolutely love it. I’ll never stop loving it, but I just hate the business. I think that fighters are just completely replaceable, and the business will make you feel like that any chance it gets.” Aspinall told Uncrowned’s Petsey Carroll.
On March 5th, Tom Aspinall signed a commercial and advisory deal with Matchroom Boxing, whose Chairman, Eddie Hearn, is a rival to Dana White’s Zuffa Boxing promotion. Hearn will advise Tom Aspinall on his contract negotiations moving forward, while his father, Andy Aspinall, remains his manager. The deal can complicate negotiations between two bitter rivals. The UFC has a history of having long, drawn-out negotiations with heavyweight champions that usually result in the champion leaving the UFC (Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones)
“You don’t want to make enemies with the UFC… You’re gonna have someone manage you that Dana doesn’t really like? That doesn’t seem very smart,” Sean O’Malley stated on the Ariel Helwani Show.
Despite the UFC’s complicated history with its heavyweight champions and Dana White’s poor relationship with Eddie Hearn, this deal may be good for Aspinall, the UFC, and MMA as a whole. Hearn will serve as an advisor during contract negotiations with the UFC, but Aspinall already has a contractual obligation to fight at least two more times for the UFC. He will return to defend his undisputed heavyweight title, hopefully in 2026, and both sides seem willing to work together.
Hearn’s primary goal with Aspinall is to boost Aspinall’s commercial value and brand, an area where Eddie Hearn has had a lot of success (Anthony Joshua, Katie Taylor, Connor Benn, and Dmitri Bivol). If Hearn helps Aspinall raise his commercial value and brand, it benefits the UFC. A longstanding criticism of the UFC is the lack of star power within the promotion in comparison to a decade ago. Hearn has had success building the brands and commercial value of fighters. If he can do that with Tom Aspinall, the undisputed heavyweight champion of the UFC, he can help the UFC create a certified superstar for the UFC promotion.
“As an organization, they need HIM, he doesn’t need the UFC. They need heavyweight stars and stars full stop” Eddie Hearn stated on Tom Aspinall’s YouTube channel.
For the UFC, a marketable, dominant heavyweight champion is exactly what the organization needs. If Eddie Hearn and Dana White work together, Aspinall could become a global superstar and the face of the UFC. But if egos stand in the way of a professional working relationship, Tom Aspinall may be yet another UFC heavyweight champion seeking to fight elsewhere.
Interim Title Show 
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