Tom Aspinall's first UFC heavyweight title fight against Ciryl Gane ended in a no contest after a brutal accidental eye poke - leaving the champ furious.
Aspinall and Gane were getting into the groove in the opening round of their UFC 321 main event but the Frenchman caught his opponent with fingers in both eyes and he was immediately in discomfort.
Aspinall was evaluated by the doctor but repeatedly told him and the referee, "I can't f***ing see". He had a cloth on his eye but reiterated that his vision did not come back and after the allocated time-out, a no-contest was called before round one was even completed.
Both fighters were desperate to leave the Octagon but had to stay for the official fight result.
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Aspinall was then asked about the incredibly disappointing outcome, which he branded "bulls**t" as he let rip on the fans who booed at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabu.
Slow-motion footage showed that fingers from Gane went into both of Aspinall's eyes, preventing him from continuing.
According to Alex Behunin of MMA Mania, Aspinall, who also suffered a busted nose from a strike, has been taken to hospital.
Gane responds to Aspinall eye poke
Former UFC interim heavyweight champion Gane, who had been bringing the fight to Aspinall, issued an apology to him and the fans in the area for the accident.
"I feel sorry," he said when interviewed by UFC legend Daniel Cormier.
"I'm sorry for the crowd, for the fans, I'm sorry for Tom Aspinall and sorry for myself.
"We put a lot of energy in this fight so I'm disappointed but this is the sport, this is life.
"I don't know what is going to happen for the future but we will see."
Aspinall was understandably livid with what happened but his anger increased because of the loud boos from the fans in attendance and promptly vented in his post-fight interview.
"Guys, I just got f***ing poked knuckle deep in the eyeball," he ranted.
"What the f**k? Why are you booing? What am I supposed to do about it? I didn't do the f***ing poke. I can't see. Tom, they should not be booing. This is bulls**t. The fight was just getting going. Complete bulls**t. I'm p***ed off. I can hardly open my eye. Look. Look. Look at this. Look at this. Fucking double poke. Both eyeballs. Yeah, it was double. It was double."
The result will not count on any of the fighter's records but Dana White has confirmed they are looking to book a rematch as swiftly as possible.
Topics: Tom Aspinall, UFC
Josh Lawless