"Stop tripping" - Ciryl Gane responds to Tom Aspinall's accusations of ducking him and multiple heavyweight opponents
No.2-ranked heavyweight contender Ciryl Gane has hit back at interim champion Tom Aspinall's comments regarding him.
In a recent interview, Aspinall insinuated that Gane refused to match up against him and avoided a fight. He also alleged that the Frenchman turned down fights against other heavyweights, including Sergei Pavlovich and Curtis Blaydes.
Aspinall said on The MMA Hour:
"He's dismissed me on multiple occasions and I'm not the first guy that he's dismissed. I'm not the first guy that he's ducked. The reason that I got the Pavlovich fight was because Ciryl didn't want it so he ducked Pavlovich. He then ducked Curtis Blaydes. Curtis Blaydes has been on record saying that. I asked for him, years ago, didn't want it then. Then when I asked for him in Paris, they flew me over, we tried to make that fight. He didn't want it then."
Check out Tom Aspinall's full comments below:
Gane took to X (formerly known as Twitter) and hit back at Aspinall's comments. He clarified that fighting Blaydes was not on the table and that he had agreed to take on Pavlovich but did not elaborate on why the bout did not materialize.
The Frenchman assured Aspinall that he will fight him later this year, writing:
"@AspinallMMA, I never, ever say no to any challenge or any opponent. Blaydes was never an option. They said Pavlovich, I said yes. Don't worry, I'll see you in September, stop tripping [round pushpin emoji] @Mickmaynard2 @danawhite"
Check out Ciryl Gane's post on X below:
Will Tom Aspinall and Ciryl Gane fight later this year?
Both Ciryl Gane and Tom Aspinall have not fought since the turn of the year.
Aspinall continued to call out heavyweight champ Jon Jones for a title unification bout before eventually accepting that Jones will not be pushed into it. Jones also reportedly turned down a main event fight at UFC 300 due to concerns over his recovery, so it is unlikely that a heavyweight unification fight takes place anytime soon.
Gane, meanwhile, put in a Performance of the Night showing against Serghei Spivac last September to bounce back from his loss against Jones but has not been booked to fight anyone since.
Both Aspinall and Gane are at the very top of the heavyweight pecking order and do not have any scheduling or injury concerns. A potential interim title fight in Aspinall's home country of the United Kingdom could prove to be blockbuster.