Tom Aspinall is eager to get back inside the Octagon, but Eddie Hearn said his fighter needs additional testing on his eyes before he throws leather again.

Aspinall hasn't been in action since suffering a double eye poke in the UFC 321 main event back in Oct. 2025. He was putting his heavyweight gold at stake against Ciryl Gane, who was having success on the feet before committing the accidental foul. Aspinall couldn't continue, and the fight was ruled a no contest.

In the following weeks and months, Aspinall had to undergo numerous eye surgeries to correct his issues. While Hearn, who represents Aspinall through Matchroom's talent agency, wants to see his fighter leave no doubt as to who runs the UFC heavyweight division, he admitted to Bloody Elbow that there is still a hurdle to clear (via MMAFighting).

“He's under contract,†Hearn said. “The only thing that we have to look at is when Tom Aspinall will be ready to return. And that's not when he will be ready to return from a mindset perspective; that's from a commission perspective in terms of his injuries. And that shows you what he has been through, because if the commission won't let him fight, you know how serious the injuries were. Not saying that's the case, but that's the position we need to get to in order for him to return to the ring.

“He's motivated, and I can't give you an exact date yet, but what I can tell you is he wants to get back in there as soon as he is physically able to do so.â€

Hearn insists that Aspinall is in the right frame of mind to do battle once again, but he must see through the logistics before he's back to prizefighting.

“It all depends whether he'll be ready,†Hearn said. “He's training. I think he's gonna have to go through some additional testing to make sure he's good to return, but he wants to fight.

Ciryl Gane has since captured the interim heavyweight title, stopping Alex Pereira via second-round TKO at UFC Freedom 250. A title unification bout with Aspinall is the clear path once the main champion is fully ready to compete again.

Are you expecting Tom Aspinall to fight Ciryl Gane in a title unification bout before the end of 2026, or will we have to wait a bit longer? Join in on the conversation in the comments below.

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM

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Dana White has shared his stance on the three UFC 329 fighters who were fined.

Max Holloway, who headlined the International Fight Week card, Paddy Pimblett, and Gable Steveson all hopped the Octagon fence after emerging victorious in Las Vegas on July 11. While it's the most popular celebratory gesture in MMA, it often draws the ire of the Nevada State Athletic Commission. As a result, all three men were fined despite backlash from the likes of UFC Hall of Famers Daniel Cormier and Michael Bisping.

White isn't nearly as harsh on the NSAC as others, but when speaking to reporters during a recent Contender Series scrum, the UFC boss said there should be more of an understanding depending on whether or not the celebration actually caused an issue (via MMAJunkie).

“It's one of those tough things because these guys get so excited,†White said. “When you're caught up in the moment, when you think about how hard they train, they're gone from their families, they cut weight, they do all this stuff, and then they win, they're not thinking about fines or any of that stuff. What I think should happen is if you jump out of the cage to do something violent, then you should get fined… The perfect example is Khabib (Nurmagomedov) when he went after (Conor McGregor). Those type of things. But if you just get overly excited and you jump out of the cage, I don't think that's a big deal.â€

The likes of Bisping have slammed athletic commissions for taking money out of fighters' pockets. The NSAC defended their decision and have pointed to the aforementioned 2018 incident where Khabib Nurmagomedov jumped out of the Octagon to attack Dillon Danis, a member of Conor McGregor's team.

Whether or not the NSAC will eventually soften its stance on the most popular post-fight celebration in the sport remains to be seen.

Do you agree with Dana White's take on the NSAC fining MMA fighters for jumping the cage fence? Share your opinion in the comments below.

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM

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Tommy
McMillen firmly believes he is the top prospect in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight division.

The undefeated 145-pounder will meet fellow unbeaten prospect
Marwan
Rahiki at
Noche UFC 4 on Sept. 12 in Glendale, Arizona, and McMillen
believes the matchup is exactly what he wants at this stage of his
career.

Tommy McMillen welcomes the Marwan Rahiki matchup at Noche
UFC

McMillen (11-0) has 10 finishes on his record, with his lone
decision win coming in his contract-winning effort on
Dana White's Contender Series. When asked about facing a
dangerous prospect in his third UFC outing rather than a
less-challenging matchup, McMillen said he welcomes the
challenge.

“Yeah, you know I like to fight,†McMillen said in a recent
interview. “I want to fight the toughest guys to prove that I’m on
a different level.â€

Rahiki (9-0) has earned finishes in all nine of his professional
victories and, like McMillen, is 2-0 in the UFC. The latter
believes his opponent’s confidence makes the matchup even more
appealing.

“This kid’s a prospect, he runs his mouth, he talks a lot and
that’s the exact fight that I want to take head-on and just show
everybody like I am who I say I am,†McMillen added. “This kid’s
another prospect, so I’m gonna go out there and put him down, cash
another $100,000 bonus and just show that, you know, this is my
time.â€

Ready to prove why he's the top prospect at
145lbs 🤩

Tommy
McMillen is ready for #NocheUFC
👊 pic.twitter.com/IXXwu26t2D

— UFC on Paramount+ (@UFConParamount)
September 1, 2026