Paddy Pimblett wasn’t the only fighter to face setbacks at UFC 324 last week. In the women’s flyweight three-round bout, Rose Namajunas and Natalia Silva fought a very different fight from the headliner. Namajunas started cautiously, landing sharp strikes and taking Silva down in the second round. However, Silva turned up the pressure in the third round and landed heavy shots that earned her a unanimous decision victory. ‘Thug’ left the Octagon with a serious injury and now faces a situation similar to Tom Aspinall’s medical issues.

With her latest loss, Rose Namajunas falls to 1-2 in her last three fights, raising questions about her standing in the division. The defeat delays her title ambitions and sets back her goal of becoming a two-division champion. During the fight, an eye poke forced Namajunas to enter the operating theater. She recently updated fans on her condition via Instagram just minutes before going into surgery.

Rose Namajunas shared an update on her health with fans

“All right, guys, I’m headed into surgery, canalicular tube surgery. Um, yeah, I got poked in the eye a few times in a fight, so, yeah, but my tube is torn, so it’s gonna be, it’s gonna be repaired right now, and uh I’m gonna have a silicone tube on my eye, so. Yeah, three months. So, pray for me, guys, and um, yeah, I’m just, just glad we can get it fixed. All right,” said Rose Namajunas in her latest Instagram video. She appeared with a visible black eye and shared the update just before heading into the operating theater.

Meanwhile, Rose Namajunas’ injury has once again reignited debate around “unintentional eye pokes” within the UFC. Over the past year, several fighters, including Henry Cejudo and Tom Aspinall, have dealt with similar incidents. In particular, Aspinall’s case drew widespread attention and pushed calls for stricter rules and enforcement.

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At UFC 321, Ciryl Gane double-poked Aspinall in the eyes during Aspinall’s first heavyweight title defense. As a result, officials ruled the fight a no-contest in the opening round after Aspinall could not continue because of impaired vision.

Later, doctors diagnosed him with significant traumatic bilateral Brown’s syndrome and persistent double vision, conditions that forced him to undergo multiple eye surgeries. Since then, fighters, analysts, and medical experts have suggested several ways to reduce eye poke fouls.

However, the promotion has yet to implement any changes, whether through glove modifications or rule adjustments, because there is a fine line between intentional and unintentional eye pokes. In the meantime, Aspinall addressed the issue with humor, offering one of his most hilarious suggestions for fixing UFC fouls.

Tom Aspinall shares a creative idea to fix the UFC’s eye poke problem

Eye pokes have long remained one of the UFC’s issues, repeatedly creating problems during the fights. Multiple fighters, including Jon Jones, have used the tactic. Although Jones has retired, the problem continues to plague the promotion and disrupt fighters seeking a fair contest inside the Octagon.

In recent years, Tom Aspinall has experienced those consequences firsthand. Notably, eye-poke controversies directly stalled his attempt to extend his championship reign. Following the incident, some fans accused Aspinall of backing out of the fight or faking his injury. However, Aspinall later appeared in public wearing glasses, confirming he had already undergone surgery on one eye while awaiting another procedure.

Earlier this month, Aspinall proposed a solution aimed at addressing eye pokes and other fouls in mixed martial arts.

“I’m still under the notion that if someone’s fouling, if they do it once, you can deem it an accident. If they do it twice, plus the other person’s allowed a foul as well,” said Tom Aspinall on the One on One MMA channel.

During the discussion, host Adam praised Aspinall’s idea and described it as a “freebie” that would allow the fouled fighter to respond immediately. “We’re fighting. You kick me in the n-ts once. The ref gives you five minutes, whatever, to recover, however long they give you. We restart. You do it again,” Aspinall added.

With Rose and other fighters still facing eye pokes and similar fouls while the UFC has yet to take decisive action, what’s your take on these controversial incidents? Share your thoughts below.