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Tom Aspinall's first defence of his undisputed heavyweight title ended in bitter disappointment after an accidental eye poke from Ciryl Gane left the Briton unable to continue at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi.
At the end of a competitive first round, France's Gane poked Aspinall in both eyes while attempting a punch, with the referee stopping the contest.
Aspinall, 32, could be seen telling the doctor "I can't see" as he held a cloth to his eye, and with the Briton unable to fight on the referee deemed the bout a no contest.
The result meant Aspinall retained his title - but not in the way he wanted to and he showed his frustration in his post-fight interview as the crowd booed the outcome.
"Guys, I just got poked knuckle deep in the eyeball. Why are you booing? I can't see," said a crestfallen Aspinall.
"The fight was just getting going. I can hardly open my eye. Look! It was a double eye poke."
Calling the fight a no contest means the referee deemed the foul accidental rather than intentional, which would have resulted in a disqualification.
Gane was equally annoyed at the outcome and could be seen pacing around the edge of the octagon, shaking his head, as the result was announced.
"I feel sorry. I'm sorry for the crowd, for the fans, I'm sorry for Tom Aspinall and sorry for myself," said Gane.
"We put a lot of energy in this fight so I'm disappointed, but this is the sport, this is life.
"I don't know what is going to happen for the future, but we will see."
The fight was billed as ushering in a new era in the UFC's heavyweight division, and with Aspinall stating his intention to get the heavyweight division moving this latest setback will be devastating.
Fans sided with Aspinall as he was cheered throughout fight week, while Gane on the other hand, was booed.
The cheering continued on fight night, with "Tommy Aspinall" chants ringing through the arena throughout the event, but the support turned to jeers when the Briton could not continue the bout.
Aspinall was defending his belt for the first time after being upgraded from interim champion in June when former champion Jon Jones retired.
He spent 19 months as the interim title holder, waiting for an undisputed fight with Jones to materialise, before the American retired.
The result is all the more frustrating because the first round showed signs of Gane testing Aspinall like none of his previous UFC opponents.
Aspinall went into the fight having finished seven of his eight UFC wins in the first round, but he was unable to assert control over Gane.
Gane attacked with leg kicks and quick one-twos while keeping out of Aspinall's dangerous range with skilled footwork.
Before the eye poke took place, Aspinall was sporting the most damage out of the two, with blood pouring from his nose.
The nature of the bout was in complete contrast to Aspinall's previous three opponents, where he dominated on his way to three first-round finishes.
In the post-fight news conference, UFC president Dana White stated his frustration at the outcome, before revealing Aspinall was on his way to hospital.
He then said he would plan to book a rematch between Aspinall and Gane once the Briton was fit and healthy.
Aspinall is no stranger to setbacks having seriously injured his knee in the first round in defeat by Curtis Blaydes in 2022.
But he will take heart from the fact he bounced back following a year out injured, in the best form of his life, winning his next three fights in the first round.
For Aspinall and the heavyweight division it is the latest blow after years of stagnation, with only four undisputed title fights taking place in almost four years.
After Francis Ngannou beat Gane in 2022 injury stopped him from fighting, before a fallout with the UFC caused a further delay.
Ngannou left the UFC a year later, with Jones beating Gane for the title shortly after in March 2023.
Jones then beat Stipe Miocic last November - a year after their original bout was postponed because of injury to the former champion - before refusing to commit to fighting Aspinall.
Aspinall is seen by many as the future of the heavyweight division but the wait to see his true potential goes on.
In the co-main event in Abu Dhabi, Brazilian-American Mackenzie Dern beat Brazil's Virna Jandiroba by unanimous decision to win the strawweight title.
Earlier on the card, Britain's Nathaniel Wood earned his third straight win with a closely fought unanimous-decision win over American featherweight Jose Delgado.
