Tom Aspinall’s first defence of his undisputed heavyweight title ended in bitter disappointment after an accidental eye poke from Ciryl Gane left the Briton unable to continue at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi.
At the end of a competitive first round, France’s Gane poked Aspinall in both eyes while attempting a punch, with the referee stopping the contest.
Aspinall, 32, could be seen telling the doctor “I can’t see” as he held a cloth to his eye, and with the Briton unable to fight on the referee deemed the bout a no-contest.
The result meant Aspinall retained his title – but not in the way he wanted to and he showed his frustration in his post-fight interview as the crowd booed the outcome.
“Guys, I just got poked knuckle deep in the eyeball. Why are you booing? I can’t see,” said a crestfallen Aspinall.
“The fight was just getting going. I can hardly open my eye. Look! It was a double eye poke.”
Aspinall was taken to hospital after the fight and did not appear for the post-fight news conference.
Calling the fight a no-contest means the referee deemed the foul accidental rather than intentional, which would have resulted in a disqualification.
A disqualification would have gone down as a win for Aspinall.
Gane was equally annoyed at the outcome and could be seen pacing around the edge of the octagon, shaking his head, as the result was announced.
“I feel sorry. I’m sorry for the crowd, for the fans, I’m sorry for Tom Aspinall and sorry for myself,” said Gane.
“We put a lot of energy in this fight so I’m disappointed, but this is the sport, this is life.
“I don’t know what is going to happen for the future, but we will see.”
Nathan Aspinall threw two nine-dart finishes during the Players Championship 31 only to be blown away in the final – as Luke Littler suffered an early exit.
Aspinall, 34, produced perfect darts in a 6-4 victory over Irishman Steve Lennon in the second round, then repeated the feat in a 6-5 win over Germany’s Lukas Wenig in the last 16.
Englishman Aspinall had taken a 2-0 lead against Jermaine Wattimena of the Netherlands in the final in Wigan.
However, Wattimena reeled off eight legs on the bounce to clinically see off Aspinall and seal his second ranking title of the season.
The 18-year-old world champion is currently 67th in the Players Championship standings, external and has three events to secure his place in the top 64 to qualify for the finals.
Michael van Gerwen is also in danger of not qualifying after he was knocked out at the same stage with a 6-4 loss to Dom Taylor.
The Dutchman is 92nd in table and must now make the final in the Players Championship 32 on Wednesday to secure his spot because he is skipping the final two events because of a pre-booked holiday.
There are 34 Players Championship events across the year, with the competition’s finals held in Minehead from 21-23 November.
Luke Humphries turned on the style to beat Nathan Aspinall 2-0 and reach the second round of the World Grand Prix in Leicester.
Premier League champion Humphries edged a close first set 3-2, despite Aspinall recovering from a slow start to win the second leg with a ‘big fish’ finish of two treble 20s followed by a bullseye.
Aspinall struggled to start with doubles – a requirement of the double-in double-out format – as fellow Englishman Humphries took advantage and launched into the second set with a brutal 156 finish.
Humphries recovered from a wobble to see out the second set 3-0 and set up a second-round meeting with Poland’s Krzysztof Ratajski, who beat Germany’s Martin Schindler 2-0.
“It was a big game. Nathan is a fantastic player,” Humphries told Sky Sports.
“He struggled to get in a few times and he let me in with that 156, which was a big shot there to take the game towards myself.
“My scoring was a bit strange, they just didn’t want to drop in.
“Hopefully on Wednesday I can come back and be better.”
England’s Stephen Bunting – who recently won the Swiss Darts Trophy for his sixth title of the season – beat Germany’s Niko Springer 2-0, and fifth seed James Wade fell to a surprise 2-0 defeat to Joe Cullen in an all-English contest.
The first round continues on Tuesday as Peter Wright takes on 2024 Grand Prix champion Mike de Decker, Luke Littler faces Gian van Veen and Michael van Gerwen plays Dirk van Duijvenbode.
World number one Luke Humphries got the better of fellow Englishman Nathan Aspinall to claim a superb victory in the final of the US Darts Masters.
Humphries, 30, followed up his World Masters and Premier League titles with an 8-6 win in the World Series of Darts event at New York’s Madison Square Garden.
Aspinall defeated world champion Luke Littler 6-4 in the quarter-finals earlier on Saturday.
“This is the most iconic venue that we play in and it’s really special to win this event,” said Humphries.
“It’s one of the top venues in the world and it’s one I’ve always dreamed of winning. When I finally won, it was an amazing relief.”
Former UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones did not retire to avoid fighting Tom Aspinall, says Ilia Topuria.
Britain’s Aspinall was upgraded from interim to undisputed heavyweight champion this week after Jones, 37, announced his exit from the sport.
Jones’ retirement followed seven months of the American not committing to fighting 32-year-old Aspinall in a unification bout.
Spain’s Topuria, who faces Brazilian Charles Oliveira for the lightweight title at UFC 317 in Las Vegas on Saturday, says Jones did not “duck” a fight with Aspinall.
“No, no, no, no, no. Jones fought the best of all time. In the last 10 years he fought the best fighters in the world. He’s not ducking anyone,” Topuria told BBC Sport.
“I think that he could retire whenever he wants. He has done amazing things in the sport. He’s let’s say, the best to ever do it. So I think he took a good decision. He’s the GOAT [greatest of all time].”
Mixed martial arts (MMA) legend Jon Jones has retired, and interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall has been elevated to the undisputed title holder, Dana White, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) president and CEO, confirmed.
“Jon Jones called us last night and retired,” White said during a news conference on Saturday in Azerbaijan, where UFC Fight Night was held.
“Jon Jones is officially retired. Tom Aspinall is the heavyweight champion of the UFC.”
Jones, who turns 38 on July 19, has compiled a win-loss record of 28-1 with 11 total knockouts (TKOs), capturing UFC titles at light heavyweight and heavyweight. He was in line for a highly anticipated unification bout with Aspinall, 32, who became the UFC’s interim heavyweight champion in November 2023 when an injured Jones could not fight.
Englishman Aspinall (15-3 win-loss in MMA, 11 TKOs, 8-1 win-loss in UFC) posted a message on Instagram after White’s announcement.
“For you fans. It’s time to get this heavyweight division going,” wrote Aspinall, 32. “An active undisputed champion.”
Jones last fought on November 16, 2024, winning by a third-round TKO over Stipe Miocic. Jones has won six consecutive bouts since a no contest with Daniel Cormier on July 29, 2017.
White’s announcement countered words of Jones on Thursday when he appeared on the “Full Send” podcast.
“I don’t want to say that I’m retired because fighting’s in my blood,” Jones said on the podcast, per multiple media reports. “Right now, I could really care less about fighting. I’ve been doing it my whole life at a very high level and when the itch comes back – and if it comes back too, then I’ll do it with my whole heart, do it to the best of my abilities.”
Jones has had a chequered history out of the octagon, where he became the youngest UFC title holder at age 23 with a win over Mauricio Rua for the 205-pound crown. Jones, who is 16-0 in UFC title bouts, has dealt with legal issues was well as a yearlong suspension in 2016 for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs – a result he disputes.
US President Donald Trump watched as Jon Jones defeated Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 on November 17, 2024, in New York [Evan Vucci/AP Photo]
Rountree Jr downs Hill in Baku
Meanwhile, former UFC light heavyweight title challenger Khalil Rountree Jr earned a dominant unanimous decision against Jamahal Hill in the main event of the Fight Night, taking the cards 49-46, 50-45, 50-45.
Utilising leg kicks and knocking the former light heavyweight champion down on several occasions, Rountree Jr (15-6 win-loss in MMA) is open to multiple options for his next fight, as long as he remains in the light heavyweight title picture.
“I didn’t come in here underestimating Jamahal,” Rountree said.
Hill (12-4 win-loss in MMA) has lost three in a row and is searching for his first win since January 2023.
The co-main event went the way of hometown lightweight Rafael Fiziev (13-4 win-loss in MMA), winning a unanimous decision against Ignacio Bahamondes 30-27, 30-27, 30-27 for his first victory since July 2022. Fiziev’s striking ability made the difference, as it was the first loss for Bahamondes (17-6 win-loss in MMA) since August 2023. Fiziev does not prefer whom he fights next, as he entered the bout ranked 11th in the division.
Heavyweight Curtis Blaydes outlasted debutant Rizvan Kuniev, earning a split decision 29-28, 28-29, 29-28. Blaydes (19-5 win-loss in MMA) bounced back after falling victim to UFC interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall last July at UFC 304.
In one of the most high-octane UFC fights in recent memory, lightweight Nazim Sadykhov overcame a Herculean effort from Nikolas Motta to secure a late second-round TKO at 4:17. Sadykhov was nearly finished by a plethora of Motta strikes in the first round before Sadykhov turned the fight around in the second. Sadykhov (11-1-1 win-loss MMA) has won 11 of his last 13 fights, landing a 75-punch combination to seal the deal. Motta (15-6 win-loss MMA) suffered his first loss since June 2023.
UFC president Dana White says he cannot stop Jon Jones from retiring, despite the American having “agreed” to fight Tom Aspinall.
White was responding to the social media activity of the UFC heavyweight champion, who suggested he was retired before calling out ex-UFC fighter Francis Ngannou.
Speaking at the UFC 316 post-fight news conference, White said 37-year-old Jones had said nothing about retiring to him and that he was only interested in matching him with Aspinall.
“Tom Aspinall is the guy. If the guy wants to retire and doesn’t want to fight, there’s nothing you can do,” White said.
“I didn’t want Khabib [Nurmagomedov] to retire, I thought [Daniel Cormier] should’ve stayed in it longer, so it’s none of my business.
“I’ll do what I can to make the fight, if we can, if he’s talking that crazy, I didn’t realise that.”
With Ngannou fuelling speculation he might be open to a return to the UFC, White played down the chances even if it was to fight Jones.
World number eight Aspinall has confounded critics who opposed his inclusion in the eight-man competition, having been ranked 11 when the picks were made.
His inclusion was questioned by fellow players Mike de Decker and Dave Chisnall amid suggestions his popular walk-on song Mr Brightside helped his case.
The Stockport-born player has battled online abuse over his participation, as well as recovering from injuries and dartitis to reach the final four.
“I came off social media because of the abuse I was getting,” said ‘The Asp’ after his second nightly win, in Aberdeen a week ago.
“I’m not being exaggerated here, but it ruined my life for a month, not just my life, my family’s. It was horrific. “
Aspinall has also come back from elbow, wrist and back injuries, along with tackling dartitis – a condition where players have a mental block when it comes to throwing on the stage.
Missing out on qualification seals a miserable campaign for Van Gerwen, whose last nightly win came back in April 2024.
The three-time world champion had seven victories and two runner-up spots from his previous 12 campaigns, with his last Premier League title in 2023.
“This is probably one of the hardest Premier Leagues I have ever played in – not in terms of players, but in terms of myself,” Van Gerwen admitted.
His cause was not helped when missing the ninth event of the season in Berlin with a shoulder injury sustained while trying to put a shirt on.
Nathan Aspinall took the Premier League nightly win in Aberdeen to close on a play-off place while Luke Littler sealed top spot.
Aspinall is on the brink of qualifying after beating Chris Dobey 6-1 in the final on a dramatic evening which saw Gerwyn Price hit a nine-darter.
Dobey claimed a decider to win his semi-final 6-5 against world champion Littler, who earlier won a classic against world number one Luke Humphries that featured 14 180s.
Despite averaging 110.01, Humphries could not halt Littler, who averaged 115.96 to guarantee he would finish top of the league phase.
Defending champion Littler had already qualified for the four-man play-offs in London on 29 May alongside Humphries and Price.
Price hit his second nine-darter of the campaign but ended a 6-4 quarter-final loser to Stephen Bunting.
Aspinall moved above seven-time champion Michael van Gerwen into fourth spot with a 6-3 victory over the Dutchman before dispatching Bunting 6-1 and going four points clear after his final triumph.
If Van Gerwen does not claim the night win in Sheffield next week, Aspinall – who finished fifth in 2023 and 2024 – will claim the last play-off spot.
“All I have said to my family, I don’t want to come fifth again. I’ve put one foot in the finals. I play Michael [van Gerwen] again next week and the pressure is on him,” said the English player.
“It’s a do or die game. I save myself three hours of misery if I can beat him at 8pm, I’m going to the O2 which is a dream of mine. It’s in my hands.”
