Tom Aspinall is convinced anyone criticizing him for his disappointing UFC 321 title defense doesn’t know what they’re talking about.

What was supposed to be a crowning moment for Aspinall – he was finally stepping into a main event as undisputed heavyweight champion with Jon Jones out of the picture – ended in disaster for him and opponent Ciryl Gane after Gane poked him in the eyes in the first round. Aspinall was unable to continue and the bout was ruled a no-contest, putting a damper on the Oct. 25 main event in Abu Dhabi.

Aspinall has faced a torrent of criticism since from fans, fellow fighters, and even UFC CEO Dana White, and the negative sentiment has left him in disbelief.

“I realized, ‘Oh, people genuinely think that I faked this,’” Aspinall told Uncrowned. “And then I was like, did people actually see the replay of what happened because that was a full-on eye poke. So then I was like, what is going on? Why are people thinking I’m faking this after everything I’ve been through to get there.

“So then I left it quite a while and I thought, right, I’ve got to get all the doctor’s notes included. I’ve been through it for loads and loads of tests for weeks. I’ve literally been in the hospital two or three times a week getting tests. Then I come up with a doctor’s report and people are like, ‘He’s f*cking crying about it. He’s doing a media tour on it. He’s milking it.’ I’m like, bro, if you don’t believe the eye poke and you don’t believe the doctor’s report, what are we doing? What’s going on here? I didn’t make this shit up.

“Go watch the replay, check out the doctor reports. I’m at the point where you just cannot please these guys. These guys are f*cking losers. These guys are just crazy haters who have got nothing good going on in their life, obviously. I’ve still got a lot of fans. I wanted to keep my fans updated with what’s going on and I appreciate everybody that’s stuck by me.”

In a video posted earlier this week, Aspinall shared his thoughts on White’s comments, saying he didn’t continue fighting “because I’m not a f*cking dummy.” He told Uncrowned he hasn’t spoken to White since UFC 321, but that he and White aren’t on casual speaking terms anyway so he doesn’t believe there’s any issue between them.

What has Aspinall particularly wound up is the suggestion that he wanted out of the fight just because Gane was faring well as the underdog challenger. The French heavyweight showed sharp striking against Aspinall as the two traded shots in Round 1. Aspinall wants to assure everyone that just because Gane landed a few good shots, he was nowhere close to panicking.

“My nose is all good,” Aspinall said addressing his bleeding in the fight. “I broke my nose probably three or four times in my life. All my sparring partners know that you hit me in the nose, it’s going to bleed. But the Gen Z – I don’t even know if it’s Gen Z, so I don’t want to blame that generation – the kind of casual noob hater MMA fan that sees one bit of blood and think that guy’s losing a fight, it’s wild.

“These people must think I’m literally unstoppable just because I’ve got a bloody nose I’m losing a fight. I got hit with a couple of jabs and a couple of low kicks. You really think I got to this position having 30 MMA fights or whatever I’ve had including my amateur career that if I get hit a couple of times in the nose I start looking for a way out? Come on.”

Would-be Aspinall rival Jon Jones has also had fun with the incident, changing his profile pick to a duck with an eye patch (a reference to Aspinall supporters accusing Jones of ducking a fight with Aspinall in recent years) and then later showing up to a Dirty Boxing event riding a horse sporting an eye patch.

Even with the briefly retired Jones teasing a comeback at UFC White House next June, Aspinall has had enough of talking about the lost fight.

“Good for him,” Aspinall said. “I thought this guy was the GOAT. Focused on yourself, you’re retired. Just do your own thing. If you’re so much better than everybody else, just go and enjoy yourself. Don’t worry about what I’m doing.”

“I was trying to get a fight with him, I realize that’s not going to happen,” he added. “Jon’s just doing some damage to himself out there, so I’ll let him do his thing.”