Tom Aspinall is the undisputed heavyweight champion. Aspinall finally put Jon Jones in the rearview mirror after Jones vacated the belt instead of unifying it with Aspinall, the previous interim champ. Aspinall makes his first undisputed title defense against Ciryl Gane at UFC 321.
Aspinall spent far more time as interim champion than he should have. He even defended the interim title against Curtis Blaydes, one of a small handful of interim champs ever to defend their titles. However, that’s all in the past, and Aspinall presses forward as the division’s rightful ruler. Aspinall’s combination of speed, power and technique is revolutionary. He’s finished every UFC opponent he’s fought. His only UFC loss is a TKO leg injury to Blaydes, which he avenged. Former interim champion Gane has a lot to prove. Arguably the division’s best pure striker, questionable takedown defense and lapses in judgment contribute to his underdog status.
UFC 321 also features a second title fight. Virna Jandiroba and Mackenzie Dern run it back for the vacant women’s strawweight title. The fight was booked after Zhang Weili relinquished the title to challenge women’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 322. Dern beat Jandiroba in 2020, but Jandiroba has been the more consistent fighter since. Jandiroba is 6-1 since their last fight; meanwhile, Dern is 5-4.
Other fighters to keep an eye on include Umar Nurmagomedov, Jailton Almeida, Aleksandar Rakic and Ikram Aliskerov.
Below is the complete fight card for UFC 321 along with the latest odds. Check back all week long for the latest news, features and other content around this massive event.
UFC 321 fight card, odds
- Tom Aspinall -425 vs. Ciryl Gane +290, heavyweight championship
- Virna Jandiroba vs. Mackenzie Dern, vacant women’s strawweight championship
- Umar Nurmagomedov vs. Mario Bautista, bantamweights
- Alexander Volkov vs. Jailton Almeida, heavyweights
- Aleksandar Rakic vs. Azamat Murzakanov, light heavyweights
- Ikram Aliskerov vs. Junyong Park, middleweights
- Abdul-Kareem Al-Selwady vs. Matheus Camilo, lightweights
- Hamdy Abdelwahab vs. Chris Barnett, heavyweights
- Azat Maksum vs. Mitch Raposo, flyweights
- Jaqueline Amorim vs. Mizuki Inoue, women’s strawweights
UFC 321 info
- Date: Oct. 25
- Location: Etihad Arena — Yas Island, United Arab Emirates
- Start time: 2 p.m. ET (Main card)
- How to watch: ESPN+ PPV
