Heading into UFC 321 in October, Tom Aspinall was preparing to defend his heavyweight title for the first time. Meanwhile, his father and long-time trainer, Andy Aspinall, was already thinking ahead to a potential switch to boxing. “The money is more money. He has three more fights on the contract, and I don’t want to sign a new contract personally,” he told RMC Sport Combat. Clearly, neither of them could have predicted what was about to unfold for ‘The Honey Badger.’

On fight night, fans expecting 25 minutes of heavyweight chaos instead got less than five minutes—and a wave of controversy. Tom Aspinall was poked in the eye by Ciryl Gane, leading to the bout being ruled a no-contest. In the aftermath, experts like Michael Bisping claimed Aspinall’s father made a mistake discussing boxing plans publicly instead of handling it man-to-man. Now, Aspinall appeared on The AH Show to clarify his stance on the transition. 

Tom Aspinall clears the air about his move to boxing

Speaking to the heavyweight champion, Helwani raised his father’s comments about a potential move to boxing. He noted that some experts viewed it as an unnecessary distraction heading into the fight, prompting him to ask Aspinall how he truly felt about the idea. “My dad said that he wanted me to box from the beginning. And also, those remarks were coming from my dad and not me,” Aspinall told Helwani. “I’m a prizefighter… because we want to fight for the most money possible.”

Aspinall then clarified why his father made those statements. “My dad, being a dad, if he sees me going out there and risking my life, then he wants me to do it for the most money possible… It wasn’t like in a public negotiation with the UFC or anything like that. He was just speaking honestly,” he added. When asked if the UFC was ticked off by the comments, Aspinall revealed he didn’t even hear about it until after the fight.

Pressed directly on whether he actually plans to transition to boxing, Aspinall admitted he’s keeping the door open. “Never say never, but… I got more to do with the UFC. So right now and before the fight, that wasn’t really something that I was thinking about,” he said during the interview with Helwani. As for the future? “I don’t know, I have no idea. I have no idea.” Still, he emphasized that none of the chatter about boxing distracted him before the fight.

After UFC 321, Aspinall now has two more bouts left on his UFC contract. The first is expected to be a rematch with Ciryl Gane in an attempt to right the wrongs. While no date or venue has been finalized, the rematch feels inevitable given Dana White’s confirmation and the general sentiment surrounding their first encounter. But that wasn’t the only headline. Aspinall also revealed that he was disappointed by Dana White’s actions after the controversial fight.

Aspinall hasn’t spoken to Dana White since the fight

Later in the interview, Helwani brought up Dana White’s post-fight press conference comments, where White claimed Aspinall could not continue. Helwani noted that White didn’t defend him and even seemed irritated by the outcome. “I was very disappointed,” Aspinall reacted to White’s comments. When asked whether all the criticism could have been avoided had White simply stated that Aspinall was poked in the eye and that it was illegal, Aspinall admitted, “It definitely didn’t help the cause. Definitely didn’t.”

The Brit also revealed that he has spoken to the UFC since the incident, though not directly to Dana White. “I’ve spoken to the UFC since, but I’ve not spoken to… I don’t really… Me and Dana don’t really speak like that anyway… ever,” he told Helwani. The lack of a personal relationship didn’t bother him, but he was frustrated with White for the health updates he shared publicly. “He started giving updates that there was nothing wrong with my eye when that isn’t the case. So, I’ve done a lot for the UFC. So yeah, disappointing,” Aspinall added.

While communication with UFC leadership has been limited, Aspinall confirmed the promotion has been checking on his availability to return. “I’m not in a position to be able to answer that right now. We sent them all the doctor’s reports and stuff. So that’s all we can do,” he said. Aspinall recently released a medical report revealing he suffered “significant bilateral ocular trauma.” He also criticized Ciryl Gane, calling him a cheater for repeatedly attempting eye pokes throughout the first round.

All things considered, Tom Aspinall now finds himself in a complicated spot after the controversial UFC 321 incident. Neither Dana White nor many fans are pleased with how the fight ended, and the pressure is on for Aspinall to make a strong comeback and silence the criticism. Do you think he can right the wrongs?