Eddie Hearn: Tom Aspinall won't fight Pereira-Gane winner under current UFC deal
Eddie Hearn: Tom Aspinall won't fight Pereira-Gane winner under current UFC deal
Matt Erickson, MMA JunkieFri, June 5, 2026 at 5:07 PM UTC
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Eddie Hearn: Tom Aspinall won't fight Pereira-Gane winner under current UFC deal
Buckle up, because the UFC's heavyweight road could stay rocky for the foreseeable future.
Some clarity is coming in a little more than a week when Alex Pereira fights Ciryl Gane for an interim title at UFC Freedom 250. Pereira is chasing history and a UFC title in a record third division.
There's an interim belt to begin with because heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) still is on the sidelines after his title fight against Gane (13-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) last year, in which Gane poked Aspinall in both his eyes, which led to a no contest and eventual Aspinall surgeries. He's still not fully cleared to return, so Pereira (13-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) vacated his light heavyweight title to move up for the shot at the triumvirate.
It's been presumed that the Pereira-Gane winner will fight Aspinall to unify the belts later this year. But because this is MMA, and things can never be nice and simple, there's further drama thanks to Aspinall's relationship with the UFC outside of the cage.
During his eye recovery layoff, Aspinall appeared to draw the ire of UFC brass members including CEO Dana White, who at times seemed to question the severity of the eye pokes Aspinall took, despite his need for multiple surgeries.
Then, in the midst of White's verbal back-and-forth on social media and in the press with British boxing promoter Eddie Hearn, Aspinall signed with Hearn's fledgling Matchroom Talent Agency – meaning Hearn likely will be his chief negotiator with the UFC.
At a Friday news conference for Katie Taylor's boxing match in September at Croke Park in Dublin, Hearn said if he does his job for Aspinall, there won't be an Aspinall fight against the winner — at least not under his current deal.
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"I'm not going to let Tom Aspinall fight for the kind of money that's in his contract," Hearn told the gathered media (H/T/ Bloody Elbow). "To be involved in a fight against Pereira or Gane, for literally 1/50th of the revenue of that show – f*ck that. I won't let him do it. It's time that those UFC fighters stop being mugs and start to understand that these people are taking advantage of them. They deserve better.
"My advice to Tom Aspinall will be don't you dare take that fight for the money that's in your contract. You are one of the biggest stars in UFC. That fight against Pereira or Gane is one of the biggest fights the UFC can make."
Given White and Hearn already are at odds, to the point they've discussed a boxing match against each other, Hearn's comments Friday are the start of what could be some tumult in the UFC's heavyweight division that will look familiar.
It's not been that long ago that Francis Ngannou was cut loose from the UFC while heavyweight champion when negotiations broke down with him and, primarily, White. Ngannou signed with the PFL and had one MMA fight there, plus two boxing matches, and fought for Jake Paul's MVP MMA debut event a few weeks back, showing there's plenty of paydays outside the UFC.
Time will tell if Aspinall's situation will play out in a similar way, but Hearn's comments are steering the ship in that direction right out of the port.
"I will tell you the number in time: UFC fans will be sick to their stomach about the money that Tom Aspinall is supposed to get for that kind of fight – for the revenue that exists in that kind of fight," Hearn said. "It's not fair. We're not trying to be unreasonable, but my advice to Tom Aspinall is you don't need that. You nearly lost your eyesight. You had four operations on your eyes, and you want to go back and fight for virtually nothing in this fight in a rematch? He doesn't know better – he's a fighter. But trust me when I say, I know what I'm talking about. It's outrageous, and I'll do everything I can to not allow it."
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Manager: Aspinall won't fight Pereira-Gane winner on current UFC deal
Source: “AOL Sports”
