Ciryl Gane has taken aim at Tom Aspinall’s months-long reaction to their UFC 321 eye-poke incident in Abu Dhabi, as he turns his focus toward an interim heavyweight title clash with Alex Pereira.
Aspinall spent about six months criticizing Gane’s fingernails after the foul in their UFC 321 headliner, which left him unable to continue. He blamed the eye poke for double vision, vertigo, and a temporary driving ban.
Gane said he was not affected by the accusations and instead took issue with how Aspinall handled things publicly. “His communication strategy was really bad,” Gane said. He added, “Today, he’s signed with an agency that I hope helps him with his communication because it was catastrophic. Sometimes it’s better not to say anything. These things happen. You don’t need to overdo it, exaggerate it. The guy was like, ‘Ahh, ahh,’ acting like he can’t drive anymore.”
“He said so many things and spent so much time trying to accuse me of who knows what,” Gane continued. “It just didn’t make sense anymore at a certain point. Even his own fans must have been like, ‘Wow, man, that’s enough. Relax. These things happen. We’ve got your back, but you should calm down a bit.’ But yeah, that was his communication. I wasn’t affected at all. Social media is secondary.”
Gane is scheduled to face Alex Pereira for the interim heavyweight title next month in the UFC White House co-main event in Washington, DC. The winner is expected to face Aspinall later this year to unify the belts, while Aspinall returned to light training in March.
