UFC star demands Tom Aspinall be stripped of heavyweight title after eye injury delayed return

UFC star Josh Hokit has taken to social media to demand that Tom Aspinall be stripped of his heavyweight title after the latter’s eye injury has caused a delayed return to fighting.

Hokit slammed Aspinall and the division for allowing a champion who ‘doesn’t want to fight’ to retain the title.

Aspinall suffered a bilateral eye injury from a series of eye pokes from opponent Ciryl Gane during their title fight at UFC 321 in October 2025.

The fighter was later diagnosed with bilateral traumatic Brown’s syndrome, and revealed in December that he had not been medically cleared to fight again, nor was he training.

In May, it was again affirmed that Aspinall had not been cleared to spar, and was awaiting further scans, which were due to take place in the following months.

His fight with Gane was declared a no-contest, and the UFC superstar’s return timeline is slated for possibly September. His heavyweight title reign is considered controversial, prompting Hokit’s rant.

Aspinall was promoted from interim champion to undisputed status in June 2025 following Jon Jones’ retirement; his fight against Gane was his first defence. Hokit unleashed a rant on Twitter (now X) questioning the validity of Aspinall’s heavyweight title, and the severity of his injury.

Hokit slams validity of Aspinall’s heavyweight title and eye injury in four-part X rant

Hokit, who holds a 10-0-0 record in MMA and is known for his frequently controversial rants, unleashed his thoughts regarding Aspinall on X.

The 28-year-old wrote: “Tom gets an eye poke, gets butt hurt none of us bought it, then hires Dana’s enemy Eddie Hearn so he could become a boxing bargaining chip in Eddie's beef with Dana. Then Eddie hits Ariel’s anti-Dana propaganda show multiple times to drive the dagger deeper? GTFOH.

“Strip that holdout or cut him. I’m 10-0 & #4 in the world. Give me [Gane] in '26 & I’ll break Merab's defense record in '27. The HW division needs a champ who actually wants to fight, not another injury prone holdout."

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“Plus I will completely reset the HWT storyline,” continued Hokit. "And I ain't dodging [Alex] Pereira, he’s great for business and stays active.

Pereira is the only fighter officially recognised as a two-division world champion in both MMA and kickboxing. His record is 13-4-0; he lost to Gane in June 2026 after moving to the heavyweight division.

“If it's me & Alex next then let’s make it a BMF title and I’ll end Alex whenever you want to schedule it,” Hokit continued. “But let’s get some of Alex's aura back first? Let's build that fight.

"Let’s let Alex get use[d] to the weight class and create [the] maximum amount of intrigue in our fight. If me and Alex fight next, at 38 he is never fighting for the HWT Title again.

“I know his dumb Brazilian coach thinks it’s a winnable fight for him, I promise you it’s not. So let's stop playing games. Cut Tom or strip him of his title and give me Ciryl Gane,” he concluded.

Aspinall recently informed the UFC of his intention to return this year, with September being cited as a potential date for his comeback. He has been medically cleared to fight after an eight-month absence.

His first fight back is rumoured to be a rematch against Gane, with Aspinall looking to make his first successful title defence, with the no-contest decision in 2025 not counting as such.