Tom Aspinall hasn’t enjoyed the best of weeks. Not only did the first defense of his undisputed UFC title reign not go as planned, but Dana White has also fired shots at him.
The 32-year-old has seen a shift in support following Saturday’s disappointing ending in the UFC 321 headliner. Despite suffering an illegal eye poke, which subsequently ended the fight, the Englishman received a wave of backlash from fans.
The bad times keep on rolling for Tom Aspinall after Dana White hit out at the heavyweight kingpin for his refusal to defend his title. Aspinall confirmed that, if his good friend Ante Delija fights his way into championship contention, he will happily relinquish the gold that he has worked so hard to obtain.
“My friend and training partner has just got to the UFC,” Aspinall said during an appearance on the ShxtsnGigs podcast. “He just got his first win and now he’s in the top 10.”
“So, he’s potentially two or three wins away from a title shot. So, the thing is, if I’d never won a title [and] never touched gold before, I would. We would have to fight because that’s my dream.”
“But now I’ve done it, I would be like, I’ll vacate it, and he can have his time. I wouldn’t fight him. No chance.”
Related: Dana White plans Tom Aspinall vs. Ciryl Gane rematch after ‘nightmare’ finish
Those comments didn’t go down well with Dana White, who had much to say about the potential occurrence.
“I hate that,” White said in response to Aspinall’s revelation. “Many friends, relatives, name it, have all fought each other before.”
“It doesn’t determine whether you are friends with somebody or you hate somebody. You’re competing against them to see who the best is.”
“But that’s his decision. To even think about vacating it because you don’t want to compete against somebody is absolutely insane. But he’s a grown man, that’s up to him.”
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