UFC's White: Gane Must Fight for Undisputed Title After Aspinall Vacates

UFC CEO Dana White has confirmed that interim heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane will not automatically become the undisputed champion following Tom Aspinall's decision to vacate the title. White stated that Gane must compete in a fight to claim the undisputed belt, breaking from the promotion's typical practice of elevating an interim champion when the undisputed title is vacated. Aspinall relinquished the heavyweight title earlier this week while recovering from ongoing eye injuries that have required multiple surgeries. The injuries stemmed from an eye poke during his scheduled unification bout with Gane at UFC 321, which ended in a no contest. Aspinall has not competed since the incident and later underwent surgery. Gane won the interim heavyweight title in June by defeating Alex Pereira at UFC Freedom 250. The French fighter was subsequently scheduled to face Aspinall in a title unification bout, but the fight was stopped due to the eye poke incident. Despite holding the interim belt, Gane has never captured the undisputed heavyweight championship, having previously lost to Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones.