Tom Aspinall has been left off the UFC's White House fight card, with Alex Pereira moving up to heavyweight to face Ciryl Gane for the interim title on June 14. The British heavyweight champion is recovering from double eye surgery, and UFC CEO Dana White was non-committal on his future, stating that if Pereira wins, 'we figure out what's going on with Tom Aspinall – it could be him versus Aspinall.'
The main event sees Ilia Topuria defend his lightweight world title against Justin Gaethje. In the co-main event, Pereira moves up from light-heavyweight to heavyweight to challenge Gane for the interim belt. The card also features Michael Chandler, who had long been linked with a clash with Conor McGregor on President Donald Trump's front lawn, taking on Mauricio Ruffy.
Former bantamweight world champion Sean O'Malley faces Aiemann Zahabi, while Bo Nickal meets Kyle Daukaus and Diego Lopes takes on Steve Garcia. The six-fight card is set for June 14 in Washington, D.C.
There is no place for Conor McGregor, who revealed he had been snubbed for the card and is expected to return on July 11. The announcement also confirmed no dramatic return for former champion Jon Jones, who had been linked with a clash with Pereira.
White said: 'This card was a lot more difficult to put together than we had anticipated, but we got it done. A fight fell out last night; the matchmaking team was literally in the office all night last night working on this thing. It's done, we're ready to roll. Here we come, Washington, D.C.'
