Ciryl Gane is now the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion after Tom Aspinall officially vacated the title last week. But the Frenchman continues to face criticism over the circumstances that led to him becoming the champion, particularly after his fight with Aspinall ended in a no-contest because of an eye poke.

Now, with his first title defense against Josh Hokit on November 14 at UFC 334 approaching, Gane has pushed back against the criticism surrounding the incident in an interview with Zack Nanit TV. In doing so, he also questioned Aspinall’s mental toughness, describing the former champion as “a little mentally fragile.”

“Tom Aspinall was seen as a monster, really, like a freak of nature,” Gane said in his native French. “But when you look at the numbers, it’s a different story. There are a lot of things that, even mentally… we knew he was a little mentally fragile. The way he celebrated after fights, his body language, etc. How he communicated and so on. We suspected he was a little fragile. Well, fragile is a strong word, but he was a little shaky.

“Everything that happened after our fight confirms that the guy complains quite a bit. Brother, you got poked in the eye. You have the right to stop. That’s your right. Nobody knows how you experienced that pain. But you don’t need to do everything you did in terms of public statements, because it worked against him.”

Gane’s comments stem from the fallout surrounding his fight with Tom Aspinall at UFC 321 last year. The bout ended after Gane accidentally poked Aspinall in both eyes, leaving the Englishman unable to continue and resulting in a no-contest.

Aspinall initially appeared to view the incident as accidental. However, he later alleged that Gane had attempted the same foul multiple times during the opening round before the decisive eye poke. The former champion subsequently accused Gane of deliberately trying to compromise him and called him a “big cheater” in the days following the incident.

The criticism didn’t stop there.

As time went on, the chorus of cheating allegations only grew louder. Journalists like Ariel Helwani and British broadcaster Adam Catterall argued the referee should have disqualified Gane instead of turning the bout into a no-contest.

Gane has consistently denied deliberately fouling Aspinall. During a UFC media day, he previously said that everyone, including Aspinall, was entitled to their own “opinion” about what happened.

Now, almost a year after the incident, Aspinall, after having undergone almost four surgeries, has vacated the heavyweight title, saying the eye injury he suffered against Gane ultimately contributed to his decision to step away from competition.

The Frenchman, however, appears to believe his former opponent has continued to dwell on an incident that he considers an unfortunate part of MMA.

Ciryl Gane defends himself against the ongoing “cheater” claim

Gane has acknowledged that his fight with Aspinall ended in an unfortunate way but has maintained that the eye poke was unintentional. With the Frenchman now repeatedly being labeled a “cheater,” he has pushed back by pointing out that fouls are a regular part of MMA.

“Something happens almost every weekend,” Gane stated further. “Except they decided to focus on me every time, like he is a ‘cheater.’ No, but we don’t even talk about it. It happens so often. It’s not like I’m saying this to brush it off. It happens every weekend. Unfortunately, a shot to the groin because you throw a leg kick, but the guy ducks. Well, it’s interesting what happened with Jon Jones.

“They say, like, he pokes, like Junior dos Santos, who does that when he turns his head. Obviously, he’s gonna hit the back of his head. You see, these things are trivial. It happens all the time. But you have no idea how much it happens. That’s something that happens during every fight. It’s our sport.”

However, Gane has also faced criticism over other alleged fouls during his UFC career.

Alex Pereira accused him of landing illegal rabbit punches to the back of the head during their co-main event bout at UFC White House. Plus, Jon Jones, no stranger to fighting dirty himself, called Gane out for a low blow during their UFC 285 title fight.

Former UFC champion Demetrious Johnson has previously offered another explanation, suggesting that certain elements of Gane’s fighting style can contribute to unintentional fouls. Whether that explains the incidents or not, the debate surrounding Gane’s approach has continued.

For now, the new UFC heavyweight champion has a different task in front of him. His first undisputed title defense against Hokit is approaching, but his latest comments have reopened the conversation surrounding the Aspinall fight. And with Gane now openly questioning Aspinall’s mental toughness while rejecting the “cheater” label, the former champion may have something to say in response.