Yesterday, Tom Aspinall addressed the rumors surrounding his UFC exit and clarified that reports of his departure from the promotion were simply “not true.” Following the clarification, fans breathed a sigh of relief knowing that the heavyweight champion wasn’t going anywhere and could soon return to fight Ciryl Gane in a title unification bout. However, Daniel Cormier believes Aspinall’s return to the Octagon could face one potential obstacle in the form of Eddie Hearn.

While discussing the rumors surrounding the Englishman’s UFC exit, DC pointed to the Matchroom Boxing chief’s recent comments about the heavyweight champion’s contract. According to the former two-division UFC champion, Eddie Hearn stepping in and potentially keeping Aspinall from fighting in Dana White’s promotion could ultimately derail the heavyweight champion’s career.

“Here’s the issue, though,” DC said on his YouTube video. “When Eddie Hearn is speaking about this situation and speaking in absolutes, ‘I am not going to let him do this,’ that’s actually impossible. It’s actually impossible for him to say, ‘I am not going to let him fight.’ And I think people forget this when it comes to the manager-fighter relationship. The manager works for you. You don’t work for that person. And I’m talking about across the board.

“Now, Hearn doesn’t need money. He’s been in this business forever, but Tom Aspinall doesn’t have the money that he has. So, ultimately, he will want to fight. He will need to fight. And he’s the UFC heavyweight champ. We all need him to fight. But you can’t say, ‘I’m not going to let him,’ because ultimately, there’s no other place to be.”   

Since Tom Aspinall joined Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Talent Agency in March this year, the British promoter has repeatedly criticized the heavyweight champion’s UFC contract, even describing it as “horrific.” The promotion has already been facing criticism over fighter pay. Hearn further fueled that narrative by claiming he wouldn’t let Aspinall fight in the UFC under his current contractual obligations.

Dana White subsequently responded to Hearn’s comments, saying he wouldn’t force anyone to fight in the UFC if they didn’t want to.

Daniel Cormier believes that approach creates a potential problem for Aspinall. The former champion argued that keeping the 33-year-old out of competition could ultimately hurt his market value rather than improve his negotiating position.

To back up his claim, ‘DC’ also used Francis Ngannou’s example to show how the former heavyweight champion’s timely move ultimately helped him make a fortune outside the UFC. 

Daniel Cormier explains why Tom Aspinall needs to stay in the UFC to earn Francis Ngannou-level money

When it comes to making money outside the UFC, Francis Ngannou has become a prime example of a fighter who made it big after exiting Dana White’s promotion. The PFL reportedly paid the Cameroonian $10 million per fight, while he also earned a combined $30 million for facing Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. For any UFC champion, probably outside Conor McGregor, that’s life-changing money.

For a UFC heavyweight champion, that kind of money outside the promotion can be extremely tempting. However, Cormier believes Ngannou’s career also demonstrates the difficulty of consistently generating those kinds of paydays outside the UFC.

“So now Francis fights at MVP. But what next?” Cormier added. “Now he’s already pretty much beaten everybody out there. Now, what’s next for Francis Ngannou to do to make that money and make it consistently? It’s just hard.

“Tom Aspinall goes out there into the open market. You could say he can fight Francis Ngannou. He will make a boatload of money one time, and then what happens afterwards? There’s only one place to be, and that’s for him to be in the UFC.”

DC’s argument is essentially that Aspinall’s greatest financial leverage comes from being an active UFC heavyweight champion. Leaving the promotion could potentially create a blockbuster matchup or two, but maintaining that earning power over the long term could be considerably more difficult.

That said, Hearn has already clarified that Aspinall has “no plans” to pursue a boxing fight and that his immediate future remains in MMA.

Tom Aspinall himself has also made his intentions clear. After recovering from his eye injury, the heavyweight champion wants to return to the Octagon and face Ciryl Gane in a title unification bout.

That makes the current situation considerably less dramatic than some of the recent reports suggested. Aspinall says he’s staying, Hearn says boxing isn’t currently the plan, and the UFC remains the destination for the heavyweight champion’s next fight.

However, whether Aspinall eventually gets into further contractual disputes or simply continues pursuing his UFC career, only time will tell.