UFC commentators Michael Bisping and Paul Felder have raised questions about heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall's lengthy absence from competition, with both suggesting there may be more to the situation than has been publicly disclosed.
Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) has not competed since suffering an eye injury during the opening round of his fight against Ciryl Gane (13-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi last October. The heavyweight champion recently revealed that he still has not been medically cleared to return to action, leaving his future timeline uncertain.
Meanwhile, Gane is set to challenge Alex Pereira (13-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) for the interim heavyweight title at Freedom 250 on June 14 at the White House, while Aspinall remains sidelined.
Discussing the situation on a recent episode of their Believe You Me podcast, Felder suggested the fallout from the Gane fight may have changed Aspinall's outlook on his career.
"It feels like he got—and again, I haven't talked to Tom, I don't know this—but it just seems like that whole situation with Ciryl Gane got him real bitter, got him real angry," Felder said. "I don't know, man. It feels like his head got real big real quick, and now he just thinks he's above and beyond fighting in the UFC. And it's like, 'dude, you haven't fought really much in three years.'"
Bisping, who battled significant eye issues during his own fighting career, said he found the lack of details surrounding Aspinall's injury and recovery unusual.
"I've got to choose my words carefully here, but he just said he's still not cleared to fight. But he's been very vague with the details. Very vague with the details, you know?" Bisping said.
The former middleweight champion pointed to his own experience recovering from a serious eye operation, noting that he was able to return to competition in less time.
"If I wasn't cleared... because he's got a YouTube channel, he posts content all the time. You talk about it. The procedures that he had, the operations, whatever they were," Bisping said. "I had a surgery. It was a very, very serious surgery. It's called sclera buckle. Look it up online. It's gross what they do to the eyeball. I don't know what he had, but he hasn't talked about that."
Bisping continued: "I had that surgery, recovered, came back and had a fight, in a shorter amount of time than what it's taken this whole eye poke saga."
Felder agreed that the ongoing uncertainty surrounding Aspinall's condition has raised eyebrows.
"It stinks, Michael. It stinks," Felder said.
While Bisping stopped short of accusing Aspinall of anything specific, he admitted that the situation appears unusual from the outside.
"I don't say it stinks. As a guy, I know Tom. We used to have a close relationship. We don't talk these days. He was a great guy," Bisping said. "Maybe, I don't know, you look between the lines. There's something f*cking weird going on. That's what it looks like. That's what it sounds like. I'll probably get a text now."
Felder responded by defending Bisping's comments.
"That's what I'm saying. But, hey, you're just telling the truth. And we all are, right?" he said.
For now, Aspinall's return remains uncertain, leaving questions surrounding the heavyweight division unanswered as the champion continues his recovery from the eye injury.
