Overview

• UFC 321 is set for October 25 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, marking Tom Aspinall’s first defense of the undisputed heavyweight title against former interim champion Ciryl Gane.
• Their first staredown followed a Paris press conference where a pro-Gane crowd booed Aspinall, with Michael Bisping hosting the event.
• Aspinall said he doesn’t care about belt labels, stressed he is focused solely on Gane, and warned he can score a knockout while pointing to perceived weaknesses in Gane’s ground game.
• Aspinall was elevated to undisputed champion in June after Jon Jones retired, closing a prolonged unification stalemate.
• Reports indicate the co-main could feature Mackenzie Dern vs. Virna Jandiroba for the vacant strawweight title after Weili Zhang’s move to flyweight.