UFC Veteran Michael Bisping believes the UFC can’t afford to sit still, even with a champion on the shelf.
With UFC heavyweight king Tom Aspinall sidelined following double eye surgery, the division has hit a standstill. Aspinall suffered the damage during his chaotic clash with Ciryl Gane at UFC 321 last October, when Gane poked him in both eyes. The bout ended in a frustrating no-contest, and Aspinall has struggled with lingering, life-altering symptoms ever since.
Now, former middleweight champion Michael Bisping says the UFC has no choice but to keep moving forward.
A fake report recently circulated online claiming Aspinall had been asked to vacate his heavyweight title. While that rumor turned out to be false, Bisping admitted he initially understood why the UFC might consider it.
“(Aspinall) just had a double eye procedure…and it’s already been four months since the fight with Ciryl Gane,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel.
“He just had surgery, okay, and he isn’t going to be fighting anytime soon… When (rumors) said they went to Tom and asked him to vacate, I kind of understood it.
“Turns out, it’s bulls—. Tom’s waiting to make his comeback, he’s still very much the heavyweight champion of the world,” he added.
Bisping made it clear that Aspinall remains the rightful champion, but that doesn’t mean the division should freeze in place.
Aspinall recently opened up about feeling disillusioned with MMA as a business, suggesting fighters are more replaceable than they’d like to believe. Bisping sympathized with his fellow Brit but also offered a dose of reality.
“I understand what Tom’s saying, okay? Because you do feel like the whole world is turning on you. And he wasn’t the person at fault. He wasn’t. But this is the world that we live in. The show must go on,” Bisping said.
Drawing from personal experience, Bisping referenced his own history with severe eye injuries during his career.
“I went through multiple eye surgeries. I wasn’t in constant communication with the UFC. They weren’t calling me, checking on me. I got a call from Dana White when he called me. I’m not talking s—t, by the way. They’ve got a business to run. They’ve got a worldwide, massive corporation to run, putting on the best fights on the planet, okay?
“If somebody gets hurt, well then that’s a real shame, but the show goes on,” he continued. “If you get hurt at work and you can’t do your job on a Monday morning, the business still continues.”
Bisping’s message was blunt but consistent: the UFC operates as a global enterprise, and no division can remain inactive indefinitely.
With uncertainty surrounding Aspinall’s timeline, Bisping suggested the UFC explore an interim heavyweight title fight, potentially involving Alex Pereira.
“I understand that he’s p—ed off… Just ignore all of that s—t and just come back in your next fight, dominate the next few, make tons of money, and retire. But in the meantime, let’s get back to Alex Pereira,” Bisping said.
“If (Aspinall) isn’t fighting anytime soon, and it certainly looks like he isn’t fighting anytime soon… in the meantime, there’s an opportunity for Alex Pereira.”
A matchup between Pereira and Gane for interim gold would immediately inject life back into the heavyweight title picture, something Bisping clearly believes the UFC needs.
Bisping doesn’t question Aspinall’s legitimacy as champion. He doesn’t blame him for the injury, either. But he also doesn’t believe the UFC can afford to pause an entire division while waiting for one fighter’s recovery.
In Bisping’s view, sympathy and business can coexist, but momentum matters.
