Francis Ngannou has defended Tom Aspinall over his decision to withdraw from his UFC heavyweight title defense against Cyril Jeanne at UFC 321 after being stabbed in the eye.
In the main event in October, Aspinall was defending the undisputed heavyweight title for the first time when Gene punched him in the eyes twice – both times in the first round.
The second punch affected Aspinall’s eyes, and despite a five-minute break, the British fighter was unable to continue. Aspinall went to hospital after a no contest was declared.
UFC president Dana White has already stated that a rematch will be booked at the earliest opportunity. However, Aspinall’s father said his son was still feeling the effects of the accident and could not see out of his right eye.
Several fighters spoke out about the incident, with Jon Jones in particular criticizing Aspinall when he insisted that Gene was dominating the fight.
However, another former UFC star has now spoken out, with Ngannou defending Aspinall’s actions.
“I think the eye poke made a lot of news — more than the fight itself, more than the announcement of the fight,” Ngannou said in an interview with TMZ.
“I understand there was a lot of frustration, mainly on the part of the fans. (They were) very excited to see the result, but there was definitely an eye-opener and a foresight for Tom.”
“An eye poke is not like being kicked in the balls and you can recover and come back. It’s not like pain; it impairs your vision. And if you’re in a combat sport with poor vision, that’s not good at all.”
– Two F’s and an incomplete figure for a dismal UFC 321 report card
– What’s next after UFC 321: Rebook Aspinall vs. Gane immediately
– Inside Tom Aspinall’s unique heavyweight strategy
“What if your vision is compromised, and then you keep going and – maybe because of that – something happens. If you lose the battle, the same people will say how stupid you were, ‘You should have stopped, blah blah blah’.”
“So, I think it’s just frustration on the part of the fans, even though there was a poke in the eye (which) has to be respected. It wasn’t intentional of course, but there was a poke in the eye that definitely caused damage and affected vision.”
Ngannou has not competed in MMA since October 2024, when he finished Renan Ferreira in his PFL debut. Before that, he was defeated in the second round by Anthony Joshua in a boxing match.
