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Aspinall Vacates the Belt, Chimaev's Ultimatum, and Paddy's Wild Cut

This is an Open Scoring MMA News Alert. Tom Aspinall is the current UFC Heavyweight Champion, but the UFC will explore whether to strip him of his heavyweight title as he approaches a year since his last fight. Khamzat Chimaev sets a deadline, and Paddy Pimblett opens up on a brutal cut.

Aspinall Vacates the Belt, Chimaev's Ultimatum, and Paddy's Wild Cut

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This is an Open Scoring MMA News Alert.

Monday brought one of the heavier pieces of news the heavyweight division has seen in a while, and it's got ripple effects across the rest of the promotion too. Here's what's moving today, from Aspinall's title decision to Chimaev's ultimatum and a look ahead at the next few cards.

Aspinall Steps Aside

Tom Aspinall is still the UFC heavyweight champion. He suffered an eye injury against Ciryl Gane at UFC 321 back in October 2025, an injury that required multiple surgeries. Aspinall said he'd actually agreed to a fight date and was back sparring and feeling great when an accident caused further damage to his right eye, wrecking the comeback before it could happen.

Gutted But Not Done

Aspinall was blunt about how much this hurts. He also pushed back on speculation swirling around his situation, insisting the only truth is that he can't get medically cleared right now. Dana White, for his part, indicated the promotion will now have to sort out what comes next for the title, saying simply, "We'll definitely be talking about that."

Chimaev's Deadline

Khamzat Chimaev is putting the UFC on notice. According to Sherdog, the surging welterweight or middleweight threat could step away from the promotion again if he isn't offered a fight before the year is out. Chimaev has made a habit of long layoffs between appearances, and this latest signal suggests his patience for waiting around has a limit this time.

Paddy's Brutal Cut

Paddy Pimblett gave fans a look at just how far he pushed his body before beating Benoit Saint Denis at UFC 329. Pimblett is famous for ballooning up between camps because he loves to eat, and he confirmed the cut he needed to make weight for that fight was about as severe as anything he's done in his career. It's a reminder of how brutal the lightweight cut can be even for a guy who's clearly winning inside the cage.

What Else Is Cooking

Away from the headline news, Cage Warriors has confirmed Ieuan Davies won the lightweight title at CW 207 Manchester. Bare Knuckle Boxing is also making its Mexico debut on September nineteen in Tijuana, with Fernandez versus Podmore headlining a pair of world title fights at BKB fifty-nine. On the UFC side, Dana White's Contender Series Season Ten continues on September fifteen, before word is that UFC three thirty-one lands on September nineteen with Joshua Van defending his flyweight title against Alexandre Pantoja.

From the community

Over on @ufcontnt, fans are talking about this: [Tom Aspinall officially vacates the UFC Heavyweight title and has issued a statement to the MMA world.

We wish you all the best in your recovery Tom 🙏 https://t.co/SUEklGVWcw](https://x.com/ufcontnt/status/2099446877653549112).

Sources

Every source behind today's roundup (14)

We summarize the day's news in our own words. Full credit to the outlets below for the original reporting, click through to read their work:

Open Scoring MMA is a daily AI-produced MMA and UFC news podcast. Listen to today's episode, read the full Feed, or get every episode by email.

Episode transcript

Read the full episode transcript

Welcome to Open Scoring MMA. This is episode 88 for September 14th, 2026, your daily look at what's happening now and next across the world of MMA and UFC. DUKE: Big one right out of the gate, Nora. Tom Aspinall is no longer UFC heavyweight champion.
NORA: He vacated it himself, Monday morning, his own words, his own statement.
DUKE: Not a stripping, not the promotion forcing his hand.
NORA: Right, he actually asked the UFC to let him be the one to announce it.
DUKE: And it all comes back to the eye.
NORA: Still the eye. He told Bloody Elbow he'd agreed to a fight date, was back sparring, felt great, ready to go, and then, after everything he's already been through with that same eye.
DUKE: Since the eye pokes against Ciryl Gane at UFC 321 last October. Multiple surgeries just to get this close to a return.
NORA: That's rough. Sounded like he was actually closing in on fighting again.
DUKE: He was. And to both Mac Life and MMA Mania he shut down all the speculation himself, saying that ongoing complications with his eyes meant he could not get medically cleared to fight right now.
NORA: So he's not disappearing on the sport either.
DUKE: No, to Yahoo he made that really clear, saying he was not done, and that stepping away from the title was not stepping away from the sport or the dream, and that he would continue doing everything he could to get healthy, get cleared and get back to competing as soon as possible.
NORA: And the emotion in that statement, man.
DUKE: He said he was absolutely gutted, that he'd chased this dream since he was ten years old. That's a real gut punch from a guy who's genuinely elite.
NORA: Dana White's already talking about next steps too.
DUKE: White said, quote, we'll definitely be talking about that, end quote, about the division. So expect the UFC to sort out a new heavyweight title fight, maybe interim, pretty quickly here.
NORA: This clears up a division that's basically been frozen for a year.
DUKE: A full year where nobody could challenge for that belt because the champ physically couldn't defend it. Now it's wide open, and whoever fights for it next gets a real shot at undisputed gold.
NORA: I saw the piece calling him the unluckiest fighter in UFC history and I genuinely can't push back on that.
DUKE: This guy had pound for pound level tools and his own body kept yanking the rug out from under him at the worst possible times.
NORA: Fans feel for him too. Over on X, people are just sending him nothing but well wishes on this one.
DUKE: Yeah, and that's not a hot take, everybody wants him healthy first, title be damned.
NORA: So the real question now, once he's cleared, does he walk right back into a title shot?
DUKE: Nobody's answered that yet. But talent like his usually doesn't sit outside title contention for long once the body cooperates.
NORA: Sticking with big names who might not fight soon, Khamzat Chimaev.
DUKE: He could step away from the UFC again if he doesn't get a fight booked by the end of the year.
NORA: Again. This guy's had more hiatuses than actual walkouts lately.
DUKE: He's one of the most talented middleweights on the roster and he still can't stay active, that's the frustrating part for everybody watching.
NORA: If he sits out another full year, does that actually cost him in the rankings?
DUKE: Title conversations move on without you no matter how scary you looked in your last fight.
NORA: Alright, now here's one that'll actually put a smile on my face. Paddy Pimblett.
DUKE: The Baddy revealed just how brutal his weight cut was heading into beating Benoit Saint Denis at UFC 329.
NORA: We already knew Paddy blows up between camps, the man loves eating.
DUKE: But this cut was on another level even by his own standards, a genuinely massive drop just to make one fifty five.
NORA: That's Paddy every single camp, pure joy of living right up until fight week, then business mode.
DUKE: And it worked, he got the job done against Saint Denis. But cuts like that stacking up over a career is a real conversation about his long term durability at lightweight.
NORA: Still, I love watching that man fight. Baddy's must watch television every time he steps in that cage.
DUKE: Okay, gotta go back to Chimaev for a second, because this actually bugs me.
NORA: Go for it.
DUKE: If he's this good, why can't the UFC just get him booked.
NORA: It's never been that simple with him, historically.
DUKE: Sure, injuries, weight, whatever the excuse. But at some point some of that's on him too, right?
NORA: Some of it, yeah, fair.
DUKE: The talent's not the question. Nobody doubts what he does to guys at one eighty five.
NORA: Nobody's questioning that part at all.
DUKE: So this is just pure frustration talking.
NORA: Probably. But if he actually walks again, that's real time off the clock on a run that should be building toward a title shot.
DUKE: And middleweight doesn't exactly stand still waiting around for him.
NORA: It never does. That's the risk every single time he goes quiet.
DUKE: Shame either way.
NORA: It is.
DUKE: Let's shift over to card and roster stuff. Bare knuckle boxing's heading somewhere brand new.
NORA: BKB 59 makes the promotion's Mexico debut, September 19th, down in Tijuana.
DUKE: That's a real step for that sport, first time ever on Mexican soil.
NORA: Fernandez versus Podmore tops the card, and there's a pair of world title fights on it too.
DUKE: Bare knuckle's been building steadily state side, and Mexico's a market that eats fight sports alive, so this feels like a smart expansion.
NORA: It's a good test of whether that promotion can actually draw outside its usual base. Ieuan Davies was crowned champion at CW 207 Manchester.
DUKE: Vucenic's a former UFC fighter and a Cage Warriors veteran, so this isn't some soft first defense they handed him.
NORA: No, that's a legitimate gatekeeper test for Davies. Cage Warriors has been a launching pad to the UFC for years, so whoever looks best in that cage gets real eyes on him.
DUKE: Manchester crowd's gonna be loud for that one. Alright, let's look ahead. Contender Series is tomorrow, September 15th.
NORA: Season 10, week 6. We're hearing about some exciting matchups on the card, with contracts on the line for these guys.
DUKE: Always love watching people fight for their careers like that.
NORA: Then the big one, UFC 331 on September 19th.
DUKE: Van versus Pantoja two. Pantoja running it back with Van after their first meeting is exactly the fight flyweight needed.
NORA: A true rematch at the top of that division, can't ask for much more.
DUKE: And right after that, September 26th, a Fight Night card. We're hearing the main event is Raoni Barcelos versus Raul Rosas Junior.
NORA: Rosas Junior's still building that resume, good measuring stick fight for him there.
DUKE: Busy stretch of fall fights coming our way. Time for the OSM pick.
NORA: We're looking at a potential matchup for Akbar Abdullaev.
DUKE: I don't know a ton about this one, talk me into it.
NORA: The model agrees. We've got Abdullaev at ninety two percent to win.
DUKE: Wait, isn't that basically what the market's already saying?
NORA: Almost, but we're actually a touch higher than the book's implied number.
DUKE: So we're more confident than Vegas here.
NORA: Slightly, yeah. This is one where the model's leaning hard on the price itself, the gap between these two guys is just that wide.
DUKE: So no exotic angle, it's just, the line's telling the truth on this one.
NORA: Pretty much. Sometimes the honest read is that the odds already know exactly what the tape's gonna show.
DUKE: Fair enough. Akbar Abdullaev it is.
NORA: Akbar Abdullaev, strong confidence from us on this one.
DUKE: That's all we've got for you today.
NORA: Massive day for the heavyweight division, that's for sure.
DUKE: Get well soon, Tom. We'll catch you all back here tomorrow.
NORA: Take care, everybody.
Our call is Akbar Abdullaev. If you're fading that, what do you see that we don't? Before you go, two quick things. Check out our free Fight Tracker at tracker dot open scoring m m a dot com, with every upcoming UFC and PFL card, live odds, and where to watch, all in one place. And follow us on YouTube, just search Open Scoring MMA, for breaking news alerts, fight breakdowns, and videos you won't get here on the feed. That's it for today's Open Scoring MMA. Keep your hands up, and we'll see you next time.