Tom Aspinall used a short Instagram post on Wednesday to shut down claims that he is done with the UFC.

“I’m not leaving the UFC. I’ve never said I have in any interview and any words that have been taken from others today are simply not true. We are talking with the UFC daily and they will update you guys always.”

The statement was aimed at a viral claim by his striking coach Stipe Drvis, who said during an Instagram Live session that the 33-year-old would never fight in the UFC again. Aspinall’s post rejected that reading and repeated the return promise.

The injury behind the silence

Aspinall’s absence dates to UFC 321 on 25 October 2025, when his heavyweight title defense against Ciryl Gane was ruled a no contest after an accidental double eye poke in the first round. He was later diagnosed with bilateral traumatic Brown’s syndrome and underwent three surgical procedures, one on his left eye and two on his right.

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He was medically cleared to resume full contact training in the summer, ending an eight-month layoff from sparring. He remains the undisputed heavyweight champion; the belt was not stripped because the original fight ended in a no contest.

Gane holds the interim belt

The heavyweight picture has moved on in his absence. Ciryl Gane won the UFC interim heavyweight title in June, stopping Alex Pereira with a second-round TKO at UFC Freedom 250 at the White House. That result made a unification rematch with Aspinall the next mandatory step at heavyweight.

No return date has been officially confirmed. Aspinall said he was in daily contact with the promotion, and multiple US outlets have named UFC 334 at Madison Square Garden in November as the target for his comeback.

The Hearn factor

Part of the exit chatter can be traced to Aspinall’s management deal with Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom, signed earlier this year. Hearn has publicly pressed Dana White to release Aspinall from his UFC contract, and White has fired back that the push is business gamesmanship tied to a separate boxing dispute.

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Aspinall himself has not asked to be released. His Wednesday post confirmed daily contact with the promotion, and UFC 334 in November remains the fixed point his team is aiming at for the Gane rematch.

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