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Morning Report: Dominick Cruz, T.J. Dillashaw defend Ciryl Gane against ‘cheater’ accusations

Dominick Cruz and T.J. Dillashaw don’t see anything wrong with how Ciryl Gane fights. Gane was recently elevated to undisputed UFC heavyweight champion status with incumbent titleholder Tom Aspinall out for a prolonged period of time due to injury. The…

Published: Friday, 30 October 2026 at 12:00 PM
Morning Report: Dominick Cruz, T.J. Dillashaw defend Ciryl Gane against ‘cheater’ accusations
Key Things to Know
  • Former UFC champions Dominick Cruz and T.J. Dillashaw defended Ciryl Gane against accusations of being a cheater.
  • Ciryl Gane faced backlash after eye-poking Tom Aspinall at UFC 321 and landing strikes behind Alex Pereira's head.
  • Dominick Cruz argued that fighters are responsible for their positioning when eye pokes occur.
The Story in 60 Seconds

Former UFC champions Dominick Cruz and T.J. Dillashaw defended heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane against accusations of cheating on Cruz's Love & War podcast. Gane has faced intense scrutiny over controversial fouls, including eye pokes against Tom Aspinall and strikes behind the head against Alex Pereira. Cruz argued that opponents bear responsibility for avoiding eye pokes, while Dillashaw claimed Gane's illegal blows against Pereira were unintentional.

Gane was elevated to undisputed heavyweight champion while Aspinall recovered from multiple eye surgeries following their UFC 321 no-contest in October 2025. Dillashaw stated that criticism of Gane has been exaggerated by fan bias and defended referee Herb Dean from backlash regarding the officiating.

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