UFC 321: Tom Aspinall v Ciryl Gane – what you need to know

4:59 am on 25 October 2025

Reece Labuschagne, Digital Journalist

British heavyweight Tom Aspinall will defend his crown for the first time since becoming undisputed champion against Frenchman Ciryl Gane at UFC 321 on Sunday.

British heavyweight Tom Aspinall defends his UFC crown against Frenchman Ciryl Gane. Photo: RNZ

UFC 321 - Aspinall v Gane

7am Sunday, 26 October

Etihad Arena, Abu Dhabi

Live blog updates on RNZ

For the first time since becoming undisputed champion, British heavyweight Tom Aspinall will defend his crown against Frenchman Ciryl Gane at UFC 321 on Sunday.

Aspinall was bumped up from interim champion, after Jon Jones retired from mixed martial arts and subsequently vacated the belt.

He will defend the title, after three straight first-round finishes, including two interim title defences.

Meanwhile, Gane hopes third time will be a charm, after losing both previous opportunities at UFC gold.

The UFC women's strawweight belt will also be contested in the co-main event.

Brazilian Virna Jandiroba will fight American Mackenzie Dern for the vacated belt, after former champion Zhang Weili announced her move up to flyweight.

The main card features a bout between former UFC bantamweight challenger Umar Nurmagomedov and Mario Bautista.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 11: (R-L) Tom Aspinall of England punches Sergei Pavlovich of Russia in the interim UFC heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 295 event at Madison Square Garden on November 11, 2023 in New York City. Sarah Stier/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Sarah Stier / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

Tom Aspinall knocks out Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 295. Photo: SARAH STIER

New breed of heavyweight fighters

The main event shapes up to be the next step in the evolution of MMA heavyweights, with both boasting imposing muscular physiques to go along with a skillset historically only seen in smaller weight classes.

Aspinall has been largely untroubled since making his UFC debut five years ago, with his only blemish a TKO defeat by way of a knee injury. He avenged that loss to Curtis Blaydes by blowing away the American in the rematch, winning by knockout in the first minute.

Standing in his way on Sunday is a former interim champion, who hopes to win the undisputed title on his third attempt.

His last effort was a demoralising defeat against Jones, who needed just over two minutes to submit the Frenchman.

Since then, many fans hoped Jones would defend his belt against Aspinall, whom he had expressed his dislike for.

Instead, Jones retired from fighting, allowing Aspinall's promotion to undisputed champion.

While he won't fight Jones, he will want to register an even more impressive win over Gane to remove any doubt over who is the best in the world.

Anything less will be a win for Jones without him even stepping foot into the Octagon.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 07: Ciryl Gane of France celebrates after his victory by split decision against Alexander Volkov of Russia in a heavyweight fight during UFC 310 at T-Mobile Arena on December 07, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Steve Marcus/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Steve Marcus / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

Ciryl Gane celebrates after his victory by split decision over Alexander Volkov at UFC 310. Photo: STEVE MARCUS

Next chapter in women's strawweight division

Meanwhile, the co-main offers an opportunity for a new face of the women's strawweight division.

Weili stepped away after three-straight title defences and is scheduled to fight Valentina Shevchenko for the flyweight belt next month.

That means either Jandiroba or Dern will be crowned the new strawweight champion on Sunday.

The pair previously fought under the UFC banner in 2020, with Dern getting the decision win on that occasion.

Since then, Jandiroba has only lost once more, winning her last five fights to earn her first shot at a title.

Dern is 2-2 in her last four fights, but a performance-of-the-night win against Amanda Ribas in January was enough to force the matchmakers' hands.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 12: In this handout image provided by UFC, (L-R) Mackenzie Dern punches Virna Jandiroba of Brazil in their women's strawweight bout during the UFC 256 event at UFC APEX on December 12, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Handout / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

Mackenzie Dern punches Virna Jandiroba in their women's strawweight bout at UFC 256. Photo: HANDOUT

Former challengers and rising contenders

Meanwhile, former bantamweight challenger Nurmagomedov steps inside the Octagon for the first time since his defeat to champion Merab Dvalishvili in January - the first loss of his professional career.

Standing in his way of a title rematch is Bautista, who hasn't tasted defeated since 2021.

The Nevada native is riding an eight-win streak, including victories over UFC legend and former featherweight champion Jose Aldo, and former Bellator champion Patchy Mix in his last bout.

Also on the main card is a heavyweight clash between Alexander Volkov and Jailton Almeida, with the winner all but certainly earning the next shot at the belt.

Volkov has already lost to Aspinall and Gane, but Almeida provides a fresh of breath air in a division desperate for new contenders.

The Brazilian is on a two-fight win streak, including finishes of Alexander Romanov and Serghei Spivac in a performance of the night.

Rounding out the main card is a fight between Aleksander Rakic and Azamat Murzakanov. Rakic is looking to halt a three-fight losing streak, while Murzakanov is a perfect 15-0 in his MMA career.

Their form and record may paint a misleading picture, with Rakic's losses all against former UFC champions, while Murzakanov has yet to face a ranked opponent.