Dominick Cruz and TJ Dillashaw are not buying the cheating claims against Ciryl Gane. The UFC Hall of Famer and the former bantamweight champion both dismissed the accusations this week, days before Gane defends his heavyweight title against unbeaten American challenger Josh Hokit on November 14 in New York. The pushback comes as the French heavyweight champion tries to keep the focus on training camp rather than on two controversial finishes that still follow him.
The eye pokes that ended Tom Aspinall’s night
On October 25, 2025, at UFC 321, Ciryl Gane faced Tom Aspinall for the heavyweight title. Gane poked Aspinall in the eye twice, and the fight was stopped at 4:35 of round one when Aspinall could no longer continue. Aspinall was later diagnosed with bilateral traumatic Brown syndrome, leaving him with double vision and reduced visual acuity for nearly six weeks.
Aspinall initially called the poke accidental, but changed his account after rewatching the footage. He called Gane a “big cheater” and said his opponent “was cheating from the first second.” He said he chose to stop fighting rather than face one of the best strikers in the world with one eye out of commission. Without medical clearance in the months that followed, Aspinall eventually vacated the title.
The strikes Alex Pereira says were illegal
On June 14, 2026, Ciryl Gane fought Alex Pereira on the South Lawn of the White House at UFC Freedom 250, for the interim heavyweight title left open by Aspinall. Pereira, chasing the UFC’s first three-division championship, lost by a second-round stoppage. The win was Gane’s second UFC heavyweight title, after two earlier unsuccessful title bids, a decision loss to Francis Ngannou in 2022 and a submission loss to Jon Jones in 2023.
Two days after the loss, Pereira posted a video accusing Gane of repeatedly striking him behind the head, in the restricted zone at the base of the skull. Referee Herb Dean responded with his own video explaining the boundaries of that zone, noting he covers the rule at every pre-fight officials meeting. On October 26, 2026, on the Connect Cast podcast, Pereira renewed the complaint, saying the fight was stopped while he was still standing and arguing Gane was gassed and lacked the power to finish him.
Cruz and Dillashaw push back
TJ Dillashaw said most casual fans wanted Pereira to win, so they labeled every shot Gane landed as illegal without accounting for Pereira moving his own head into the strikes. He does not believe Gane cheated on purpose, and he defended Herb Dean against the criticism the referee has faced from fans.
Dominick Cruz made a similar case on his Love & War podcast. He said that if an opponent manages to poke him in the eye, it means he himself did something wrong, since his mobility makes him hard to hit in the head. He added that he does not feel sorry for Herb Dean, pointing out that fighters absorb plenty of boos themselves and that anyone who steps into the octagon has to accept that kind of criticism.
Gane defends against Hokit at UFC 334
Ciryl Gane, 36, puts his belt on the line against Josh Hokit on November 14 at Madison Square Garden in New York, in a bout billed as the fight for the undisputed heavyweight title. Hokit is undefeated in 10 professional fights, with six first-round finishes. A two-time All-American wrestler at Fresno State who spent time on the San Francisco 49ers’ practice squad, he enters off a decision win over Curtis Blaydes and a second-round TKO of Derrick Lewis.
The card also features a women’s co-main event between Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes. For Gane, a win over the hard-hitting American challenger would answer the scrutiny that has followed him since UFC 321. For Hokit, who turned pro after his football and wrestling career ended, UFC 334 is his first shot at UFC gold and the biggest step up in competition of his unbeaten run.
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