Former UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall won’t fight again, according to UFC Hall of Famer Demetrious Johnson.
Earlier this week, Aspinall vacated the UFC heavyweight title due to eye injuries that are taking far longer to recover from than he ever thought. With no timetable for a return to the Octagon, the Brit did the honorable thing and gave up his belt so the rest of the UFC heavyweight division doesn’t have to sit around and wait for him.
Demetrious Johnson Says Tom Aspinall Won’t Fight Again
Speaking on the “Mighty” podcast, Johnson explained why he doesn’t think we will ever see Aspinall step foot into the Octagon again.
“Do you guys think we’ll ever see Tom Aspinall fight again? “Logically, deep down in my gut, I would say no. I wouldn’t risk the opportunity of me losing my vision, not being able to see my children, not being able to see my kids. He could potentially lose one. I’m thinking worst-case scenario. … I’ll be shocked if Tom Aspinall fights again just because when it comes to fighting, comes to training, that eye is always going to be in compromise. It can get scraped, it can get eye poked again in training, it can get eye poked in fighting again. Is he willing to take that risk? I wouldn’t take that risk, but then again, Tom Aspinall probably has bigger balls than me, and I’m OK with that,” Johnson said (via MMAFighting.com).
Demetrious Johnson Knew Tom Aspinall Would Struggle in Recovery
According to Johnson, when Aspinall first suffered the eye injury against Gane at UFC 321 in October 2025, he always felt like it would be a struggle for Aspinall to recover due to the nature of a serious eye injury in a sport like MMA.
“When this injury happened, deep down inside, I knew the road it was going to take for Tom Aspinall to come back to fight. Not saying that I’ve sustained an eye injury before, but as an athlete, when you’re doing a sport like mixed martial arts, there’s eight-week training camps that you have to do in order to get ready for a fight and when you’re doing those eight weeks, you’re going to get punched in the face. It’s not like swimming or rowing or bike-riding or playing basketball. Your eyes come into contact when you are fighting, when you are sparring, when you are grappling, when you’re getting crossfaced, so that right there, eight weeks, it’s got to get through that training camp, and within those eight weeks, he’s also got to get an eye exam,” Johnson said.
For his part, Aspinall has not said that he will retire from the eye injuries, only that he cannot get clearance from a doctor to fight again at this point in time.
Ultimately, we will see how long and how hard the recovery takes, but at this point, it does feel like Johnson has brought up some very good points about the challenges that Aspinall faces in a potential UFC comeback.
Tom Aspinall Won’t Fight Again, Says UFC Hall of Famer