{"id":121,"date":"2026-07-01T15:02:56","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T15:02:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/?p=121"},"modified":"2026-07-01T15:02:56","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T15:02:56","slug":"michael-bisping-eddie-hearn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/2026\/07\/01\/michael-bisping-eddie-hearn\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cI Care About Fighters\u201d \u2013 Michael Bisping Fires Back at Eddie Hearn\u2019s Claims Over Tom Aspinall and UFC Loyalty"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A new chapter has emerged in the ongoing war of words between Eddie Hearn and Michael Bisping, a feud that can be traced back to the fallout from Tom Aspinall\u2019s controversial title defense <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=lyh9yq3AXlk\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">against Ciryl Gane at UFC 321<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Aspinall\u2019s return to action ended in dramatic fashion when a double eye poke from Gane forced the fight to be stopped late in the opening round.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Despite being given several minutes to recover and undergoing examinations from two cageside physicians, the British heavyweight informed officials that his vision remained impaired and that he could not continue. The situation proved far more serious than initially believed. In the months that followed, Aspinall was diagnosed with bilateral traumatic Brown\u2019s syndrome and ultimately underwent double eye surgery.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While the heavyweight champion has since recovered and is now expected to rematch Gane following his victory over Alex Pereira at UFC Freedom 250, questions surrounding the severity of his injury lingered for much of the past eight months. Among those raising concerns was former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping, who questioned the lack of transparency regarding Aspinall\u2019s condition.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Eddie Hearn questions Michael Bisping&#8217;s motives behind his criticism of Tom Aspinall:<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Michael Bisping should be ashamed&#8230; These are people that are on the payroll. These are people that don&#8217;t have any backbone about them.<\/p>\n<p>He is a fighter. He should stand up for what&#8217;s right\u2026 <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/FFAdFx07qk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/FFAdFx07qk<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) <a  href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/arielhelwani\/status\/2069842076662133012?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">June 24, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><strong>ALSO READ:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/2026\/07\/01\/top-8-ufc-fighters-most-titles\/\" target=\"_self\">Top 8 UFC Fighters With the Most Title Fight Wins in History<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bisping also scrutinized the timing of Hearn\u2019s decision to sign Aspinall, suggesting that the Matchroom chairman\u2019s strained relationship with Dana White may have played a role. Those comments <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/2026\/06\/25\/eddie-hearn-rips-michael-bisping-over-tom-aspinall-comments-as-heavyweight-champ-eyes-ufc-comeback\/#google_vignette\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">drew a strong response from Hearn<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, who accused Bisping of failing to support a fellow British fighter during a difficult period. The veteran promoter went as far as labeling Bisping a corporate stooge, arguing that his role with the UFC prevented him from speaking independently and describing him as a puppet for the promotion.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now, Bisping has fired back. Speaking <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=4ywlK7hl56w\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">on his Believe You Me podcast<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> alongside fellow UFC veteran Paul Felder, \u2018The Count\u2019 challenged Hearn\u2019s criticism and suggested the two settle their differences face-to-face rather than through social media. He said, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cHe wants to have a debate? I&#8217;m not having a debate online, but I&#8217;m very happy, next time I&#8217;m in London, to sit down face to face, man to man, and have a conversation like that. Ok, Eddie? Let&#8217;s see if he keeps the same energy.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bisping continued by addressing Hearn\u2019s accusations directly, claiming the Matchroom Head had repeatedly misrepresented his stance on the situation. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cEddie Hearn was talking shit about me and (about Felder too), really, but he only named me. He said he wants a debate. He said again he wants a debate. He said the word. &#8216;I should be ashamed because I don&#8217;t want Tom Aspinall to get paid.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_50\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-50\" style=\"width: 8640px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/36\/2026\/06\/USATSI_25740477.webp\" alt=\"Tom Aspinall at UFC London\" width=\"8640\" height=\"5760\" class=\"size-full wp-image-50\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/36\/2026\/06\/USATSI_25740477.webp 8640w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/36\/2026\/06\/USATSI_25740477-768x512.webp 768w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/36\/2026\/06\/USATSI_25740477-600x400.webp 600w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/36\/2026\/06\/USATSI_25740477-1200x800.webp 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 8640px) 100vw, 8640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-50\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tom Aspinall at UFC London (via Imagn)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The UFC Hall of Famer then strongly rejected the notion that he was opposed to fighters earning more money, insisting that his criticism had nothing to do with Aspinall\u2019s pay and everything to do with what he views as Hearn\u2019s personal issues with Dana White.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He added, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhy should I be ashamed? I have no idea the money that Tom is getting paid. I\u2019m not a part of that. All I ever said, and I think anyone with half an ounce of intelligence can see it, is that Eddie Hearn is muddying the waters with something between him and Dana White and his perceived war and beef that he has with Dana. That\u2019s all I said.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bisping continued to dismiss Hearn\u2019s criticism, making it clear that he has never had an issue with Aspinall earning more money. In fact, the former 185lbs champion said he hopes the heavyweight star secures the most lucrative deal possible. He said, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI never mentioned a goddamn word about his compensation. I hope Tom Aspinall gets paid shitloads. I hope you can go out there and get him a contract for $30 million per fight. It\u2019s no skin off my nose. That\u2019s what I want for all fighters. What the fuck are you talking about, Eddie?\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Michael Bisping responds to Eddie Hearn\u2019s request to debate after comments on Tom Aspinall\u2019s return timeline. <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/IG2Kw6GsmW\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/IG2Kw6GsmW<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) <a  href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/MMAJunkie\/status\/2071985896803504445?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">June 30, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bisping went on to explain that his original comments were never about Aspinall\u2019s pay. Instead, he said his observations centered on the timing of Hearn\u2019s involvement with the heavyweight champion and the uncertainty surrounding Aspinall\u2019s return during his lengthy recovery from eye surgery. The UFC Hall of Famer also described Hearn\u2019s response as misguided, reiterating that while he openly acknowledges being employed by the UFC and having loyalty to the promotion, that does not diminish his support for the athletes who compete inside the Octagon.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He concluded with, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI just said it\u2019s a bit weird that he\u2019s not fighting, and Eddie Hearn is now managing him. We all know that. It\u2019s absolute horse shit what Eddie Hearn is saying, and he wants to have a debate? Eddie, all you little shits out there, I don\u2019t want you to get it twisted: I care about fighters. We care deeply about this sport, and this is why we are commentators. There\u2019s nothing wrong with that.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With both men standing firmly behind their positions, the war of words shows no signs of slowing down. It remains to be seen whether Hearn accepts Bisping\u2019s invitation for a face-to-face debate, but one thing appears certain: the unresolved business between Aspinall and Ciryl Gane is expected to be settled inside the Octagon.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Reports suggest <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/2026\/06\/26\/tom-aspinall-back-in-full-training-for-ciryl-gane-rematch-as-mr-nice-guy-persona-fades\/\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the UFC is actively working on Aspinall\u2019s return<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, setting the stage for a highly anticipated rematch that could finally bring closure to one of the most controversial endings in recent heavyweight history.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A new chapter has emerged in the ongoing war of words between Eddie Hearn and Michael Bisping, a feud that can be traced back to the fallout from Tom Aspinall\u2019s controversial title defense against Ciryl Gane at UFC 321. Aspinall\u2019s return to action ended in dramatic fashion when a double eye poke from Gane forced [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5886,"featured_media":122,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[34,31,32],"class_list":["post-121","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ufc","tag-eddie-hearn","tag-michael-bisping","tag-tom-aspinall"],"modified_by":"Kshitiz Kumar Singh","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5886"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=121"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":123,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121\/revisions\/123"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=121"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=121"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=121"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}