UFC President and CEO Dana White has declared that Ciryl Gane will not be promoted from interim champion to the UFC’s undisputed heavyweight king. This decision follows Tom Aspinall's recent vacation of the undisputed title due to ongoing complications from a severe eye injury.
Aspinall's injury stemmed from eye pokes by Gane during their fight last October, which resulted in a no-contest. Gane subsequently secured the interim title by stopping Alex Pereira in June. White stated to Sportsnet, “Does it make him the undisputed champion? No, he’s still got to fight.”
White indicated that Gane’s next fight will be announced “very soon.” He also noted that Aspinall's return timeline is uncertain, dependent on his recovery. White drew parallels to Valentina Shevchenko’s recent decision to vacate the women’s flyweight strap, leading to a vacant-title fight.
Alex Pereira, whom Gane defeated for the interim title, called for a rematch last week, alleging illegal blows to the back of his head during their bout. Other potential contenders for a title fight with Gane include Alexander Volkov and Josh Hokit.