UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall has made a significant career move by becoming the inaugural athlete to sign with boxing promoter Eddie Hearn's newly established talent management company. This development occurs amidst a highly publicised and acrimonious verbal conflict between Hearn and UFC CEO Dana White, further intensified by the recent signing of Hearn's former fighter, Conor Benn, with White's Zuffa Boxing outfit just two weeks prior.
Dana White's Immediate Reaction
In a swift response to the news, Dana White has publicly stated that he harbours no objections to Eddie Hearn representing Tom Aspinall. The UFC chief executive emphasised his willingness to collaborate with his promotional rival, despite their well-documented disagreements. "We don't have any issues with Eddie," White declared. "They can get whoever they want to represent them – Tito Ortiz used to represent people and we got it done!"
Fractured Relationship and Injury Controversy
The relationship between White and Aspinall has been strained since October of last year, when the British fighter suffered an eye poke from Ciryl Gane during a bout. Aspinall subsequently underwent surgery on both eyes and faces considerable challenges in his anticipated return to the octagon. White has previously appeared to downplay the severity of Aspinall's injuries, a stance he now insists has been widely misinterpreted.
"Tom and I obviously need to talk," White explained during an appearance on Piers Morgan Uncensored. "Him and his dad came out recently and said they felt like – I don't know how they said it – but that I had sort of s*** on him in the way that I had spoken about his eye injury. That was absolutely positively not the case."
White's Defence and Respect for Aspinall
White further elaborated, expressing his respect for the heavyweight champion and clarifying his previous comments. "Tom Aspinall is a guy that I respect, he's been great to work with, never once did I question his injury or speak negatively about him," he asserted. "I said 'I think he's okay, and I think he's going to be good' and they came out and said 'no that is not the case'. He said 'I haven't even talked to Dana I don't know why he would even say that', but obviously my medical team is talking to him."
White concluded by reaffirming his positive regard for Aspinall, stating, "That was what I had thought, but they thought that I was knocking him in some way. I absolutely and positively didn't and wouldn't, I like him very much and respect him. I've never had a problem with Tom Aspinall." This public clarification aims to mend fences amidst the high-stakes managerial shift and the ongoing rivalry between two of combat sports' most prominent figures.
