# Josh Hokit’s Campaign to Upend the UFC Heavyweight Division

**By Rosa Delgado**  \nPublished August 23, 2026  \nUpdated September 9, 2026

> As Tom Aspinall eyes a return, undefeated heavyweight contender Josh Hokit is turning the division upside down, demanding the champion be stripped or cut entirely while lobbying for a title shot against Ciryl Gane.

The UFC heavyweight division is locked in a high-stakes standoff, and undefeated contender Josh "The Incredible Hok" Hokit is doing everything in his power to kick the door off its hinges. In less than a year on the main roster, the meteoric California-born combatant has bulldozed his way to a 4-0 promotional record, punctuating his rise with a second-round TKO over perennial contender Derrick Lewis at UFC Freedom 250 on June 14. Rather than waiting quietly for the matchmaking machinery to turn, Hokit has launched a public crusade aimed directly at undisputed champion Tom Aspinall and his newly appointed advisor, boxing promoter Eddie Hearn.

Aspinall has been sidelined on an eye-injury-induced hiatus since his championship bout against Ciryl Gane last October ended in a No Contest due to an accidental eye poke. With Gane subsequently capturing the interim heavyweight belt by stopping former two-division champion Alex Pereira with a second-round TKO at the UFC White House, a title unification rematch has loomed as the logical next step. While Aspinall recently announced via his YouTube channel that he has recovered, informed the UFC he is ready to go, and is simply waiting on dates, Hokit sees the situation through a sharply different lens.

## The Eddie Hearn Factor and Financial Standoffs

Hokit’s grievances extend beyond simple timing; he has aggressively criticized Aspinall for bringing Matchroom Boxing head Eddie Hearn into his corner. According to Hokit, an elite MMA athlete under a UFC contract utilizing a high-profile boxing promoter as an advisor is inherently counterintuitive, particularly given the ongoing public friction between Hearn and UFC CEO Dana White following Zuffa Boxing's entry into the professional boxing promotion space.

The rhetoric escalated when Hokit took to X to challenge the financial demands supposedly floating around Aspinall’s comeback. Pointing to alleged figures, Hokit wrote:

> The real question is if Eddie is asking for $25 M per fight for the lowest producing, non-women champion on the roster? If so, then who cares who "says" they are ready to fight. Its all propaganda to make the @ufc look bad when the fight doesn't get made.Josh Hokit

This dynamic creates a fascinating promotional chess match. As MMA observers note, if the UFC were to actually follow Hokit's radical playbook and cut Aspinall over the stalled negotiations, Hearn would instantly possess the most sought-after free agent in the sport, opening the door for cross-promotional blockbusters with entities like MVP and fighters such as Francis Ngannou. Unsurprisingly, that reality makes an outright release unlikely.

## Hokit’s Blueprint: Strip, Release, and Rebook

Frustrated by the division's stagnation, Hokit has openly lobbied for the promotion to strip Aspinall of the belt due to inactivity or outright cut him, claiming that Gane is already the rightful undisputed champion because He made Tom quit in their first encounter. Hokit's preferred timeline is unambiguous:

- Strip or release Tom Aspinall over inactivity and contractual standoffs.
- Book an undisputed heavyweight title fight between Josh Hokit and interim champion Ciryl Gane.
- Allow the winner to grant former champions a path back to redemption.Meanwhile, the heavyweight ecosystem continues to churn around him. Fresh off a dominant UFC 329 debut victory over Elisha Ellison, fellow under-30 prospect Gable Steveson has entered the peripheral vision of the division's upper tier. While Steveson has acknowledged that a future collision with Hokit is a possibility if paths align, he is currently focused on a measured ascent. Similarly, Gane remains a shared target for rising contenders, though the Frenchman's immediate future hinges entirely on the resolution of the Aspinall championship puzzle.

For now, Hokit remains vocal on social media, warning potential opponents about the physical toll of stepping into the cage with him while daring the promotion to hand him the interim titleholder. Whether the UFC brass heeds his disruptive calls or sticks to standard matchmaking, "The Incredible Hok" has successfully injected unpredictable volatility into the heavyweight landscape.

## Sources

- [mmasucka.com](https://mmasucka.com/news/josh-hokit-reacts-to-tom-aspinall-suggesting-hes-waiting-for-ufc-to-book-rematch-against-ciryl-gane/) — original
- [mmafighting.com](https://www.mmafighting.com/ufc/499070/gable-steveson-responds-to-josh-hokit-after-dominant-ufc-329-debut) — original
- [mmamania.com](https://www.mmamania.com/latest-news/454436/cut-tom-aspinall-ciryl-gane-already-undisputed-champion-after-he-made-tom-quit) — original