UFC 321 is set to go down this Saturday at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, headlined by Tom Aspinall’s first undisputed heavyweight title defense against Ciryl Gane. Aspinall returns to action after nearly 16 months away, last competing at UFC 304 in Manchester, where he delivered another trademark finish. Meanwhile, Gane enters his third shot at undisputed gold, looking to finally claim the title after previous losses to Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou.
Heading into fight week, much of the talk centered on Aspinall’s incredible finishing record. For the unversed, he has never gone to a third round in his entire MMA career. Gane took note of that, vowing to drag the champion into deep waters on October 25th. But Aspinall fired back with a warning of his own, making it clear he is ready to end things long before it gets that far.
Tom Aspinall Warns Ciryl Gane of Grim Fate for Using the Deep Waters Line Ahead of UFC 321
During UFC 321 media day, Gane was asked about his strategy heading into the heavyweight title fight against Aspinall. The Frenchman confidently explained: “Everybody knows my strength. Everybody knows his strengths, also. I can do very well to manage my distance and go to the second round, but even in a different way, if I want, I can go very fast in the very first round.”
Ciryl Gane says he’s ready to take Tom Aspinall to the later rounds for the first time in his career #UFC321 pic.twitter.com/UyDMlRLqq8
— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) October 22, 2025
He concluded with a bold prediction, “Maybe go to the deep waters with Tom Aspinall.” When Gane’s comments were brought up to Aspinall later during his own media scrum, the champion couldn’t help but laugh.
“Did he actually use the word deep waters?” Aspinall said. “Everybody who said the word ‘deep waters’ gets knocked out in the first minute. Go back and check the media that you’ve done. So I’m pretty happy with that, that’s good.”
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Tom Aspinall wasn’t impressed by Ciryl Gane’s plan to take him to ‘deep waters’.
“Everyone who used the word ‘deep waters’ gets knocked out in the first round. Check the record,” he said at #UFC321 media day. pic.twitter.com/NmPjpww3h3
— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) October 22, 2025
Aspinall’s record certainly backs up that confidence. Across his 18 professional MMA bouts, his total cage time amounts to just 26 minutes and 4 seconds, with his 15 wins coming in a combined 19 minutes and his three losses accounting for the remaining 7 minutes and 4 seconds.
Remarkably, he has never seen a third round in his entire career, and his average UFC fight time sits at an astonishing 2 minutes and 2 seconds. During his current three-fight win streak, none of Aspinall’s opponents have made it past the 90-second mark of Round 1.
In his eight Octagon victories, only Andrei Arlovski managed to reach the second round, and he was finished shortly after. By contrast, Gane has gone the distance five times in his 12 UFC appearances, highlighting the difference in their fighting styles.
Tom Aspinall with post-event media during the UFC 304 event at Co-op Etihad Campus, SportCity, Manchester, England on 27 July 2024. Copyright: xAndyxRowlandx PMI-6350-0004
Moreover, this isn’t the first time Aspinall has clapped back at critics questioning his lack of cage time. After his first defense of the interim 265lbs gold at UFC 304 in Manchester, he addressed the recurring deep waters narrative at the post-fight press conference.
Aspinall started with, “I have got an issue, right? With fighters and coaches always saying the obvious thing, which is ‘Let’s drag Tom into the deep waters. Let’s see what he is like when he gets to the third and fourth rounds.”
He added, “Fu***ng great! Drag me there then, but one’s been able to do that yet. So, you can mouth off all you want when the camera is in your face. But let’s see what happens when it comes to dragging me in the third and fourth, and fifth rounds no one’s managed to do it yet.”
Hyatt NYC Midtown NEW YORK CITY, NY -NOVEMBER 15:Tom Aspinall steps on the scale for the official weigh-ins for UFC309 – Jones vs Miocic at Hyatt NYC Midtown on November 15, 2024, in New York City, NY Photo by Louis Grasse/PxImages Louis Grasse / SPP PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxBRAxMEX Copyright: xLouisxGrassex/xSPPx spp-en-LoGr-lrg2411154223224_UFCVegas309
That fiery response came after Aspinall’s blistering win over Blaydes, which followed his knockout of Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 295 to claim the interim title. Given his track record, Aspinall’s supreme confidence is well-earned as he continues to prove why he’s one of the most dangerous fighters in the world.