TLDR
- UFC 321 main event between Tom Aspinall and Cyril Gane ended in a no-contest after Gane poked Aspinall’s eyes
- Referee Herb Dean announced officials will now enforce existing rule against extending fingers toward opponent’s eyes
- Previously, referees only took action after damage occurred, not before
- Point deductions will happen before eye pokes cause injury, not just after
- Sean Strickland praised as example of fighter who keeps fingers closed during fights
UFC Referees to Enforce Eye Poke Rule After Aspinall vs Gane No-Contest
The UFC 321 main event ended in controversy when heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall could not continue after Cyril Gane poked both of his eyes. The fight was ruled a no-contest, leaving fans and pay-per-view buyers disappointed.
Veteran referee Herb Dean addressed the incident on Michael Bisping’s podcast. He revealed that officials held a recent meeting about enforcing existing rules more strictly.
Herb Dean says changes are coming, including point deductions, when it comes to eye pokes and extended fingers. 👀 🤔 pic.twitter.com/PDedl3vze1
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) November 11, 2025
Dean explained that a rule already exists making it a foul to extend fingers toward an opponent’s eyes. However, referees have not been enforcing this rule consistently.
“That’s the rule we’ve already had in place,” Dean said. “So that rule has been there, but we haven’t been enforcing it. So we’re going to move forward on that.”
The lack of enforcement came from referees waiting until actual damage occurred. They would only take action after an eye poke happened, not when fighters extended their fingers dangerously.
Dean said this approach needs to change. “We should start taking points by them doing that action before it actually happens to hurt somebody,” he explained.
Impact on Fight Scoring
The new enforcement approach presents challenges for the sport’s scoring system. Most UFC fights are three rounds long.
A single point deduction can change the outcome of a fight. Dean noted that most three-round fights end with a 29-28 score.
“You take one point, you’ve taken a majority of wins and turned it into a draw,” Dean said. “But we’re going to have to do something.”
Guidelines and Fighter Examples
Officials are working on more specific guidelines about what constitutes the foul. Dean mentioned that fingers pointing upward could be defined differently than fingers that drop naturally when reaching.
He praised former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland as an example of proper technique. Strickland keeps his fingers closed while parrying and striking.
Herb Dean says he’s not worried about eye pokes when Sean Strickland fights 😅👏
"When Sean Strickland fights, I know he has a bad boy image. I’m not trying to make him a teacher’s pet, but he’s my favorite. I don’t have to worry about fingers."
(via @BYMPod ) pic.twitter.com/oJSIEwGXee
— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) November 11, 2025
“When Sean Strickland fights, I know he has a bad boy image, I’m not trying to make him a teacher’s pet,” Dean said. “But, man, he’s my favorite when I see him come out [with his fingers closed], and he’s parrying [all around]. I don’t have to worry about the fingers.”
The Aspinall-Gane incident highlighted how dangerous eye pokes can be in MMA. Gane’s first-round performance meant nothing after the foul ended the fight.
Referees now face the task of enforcing a rule that could dramatically affect fight outcomes. The timeline for implementing these stricter guidelines has not been announced.
