Ciryl Gane puts Tom Aspinall on blast for exaggerating eye pokes

TL;DR

Ciryl Gane criticized Tom Aspinall for exaggerating the impact of an eye poke during their UFC 321 fight, which ended in a no contest. Gane believes Aspinall's communication about the incident was poor and overly dramatic.

Key points

Ciryl Gane criticized Tom Aspinall for exaggerating an eye poke incident
The UFC 321 fight ended in a no contest due to the eye poke
Aspinall required surgery for injuries sustained from the eye poke

Ciryl GaneTom AspinallUFC 321

Ciryl Gane thinks Tom Aspinall took things too far after their UFC 321 title fight.

Gane challenged UFC heavyweight champion Aspinall for the title last October, but the fight was ruled a no contest after a Gane eye poke rendered the Brit unable to continue. Aspinall suffered damage to both eyes, which required surgery, and he is yet to be cleared for sparring.

Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) was heavily critical of Gane (13-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) by calling him a cheater and a dirty fighter on multiple occasions. "Bon Gamin" took issue with the way Aspinall handled and documented everything.

"His communication strategy was really bad," Gane told RMC Sports Combat (h/t Championship Rounds). "Today, he's signed with an agency that I hope helps him with his communication because it was catastrophic. Sometimes it's better not to say anything. These things happen. You don't need to overdo it, exaggerate it. The guy was like, 'Ahh, ahh,' acting like he can't drive anymore.

"He said so many things and spent so much time trying to accuse me of who knows what. It just didn't make sense anymore at a certain point. Even his own fans must have been like, 'Wow, man, that's enough. Relax. These things happen. We've got your back, but you should calm down a bit.' But yeah, that was his communication. I wasn't affected at all. Social media is secondary."

Gane will take on Alex Pereira for the interim heavyweight title in the UFC Freedom 250 co-main event on June 14 from the White House in Washington D.C. Aspinall is expected to face the winner upon his return.

This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie:

Q&A

What happened during the UFC 321 fight between Ciryl Gane and Tom Aspinall?

The fight was ruled a no contest after Gane accidentally poked Aspinall in the eye, rendering him unable to continue.

Why did Ciryl Gane criticize Tom Aspinall's response to the eye poke incident?

Gane felt Aspinall exaggerated the situation and poorly communicated his experience, calling it catastrophic.

What injuries did Tom Aspinall sustain from the eye poke incident?

Aspinall suffered damage to both eyes, which required surgery, and he has not yet been cleared for sparring.