Former interim heavyweight champion, Ciryl Gane has shut down the idea of a potential title-eliminator opposite the surging Tom Aspinall next – pointing at the difference in the division rankings as a reason not to share the Octagon with the UFC contender next.
Gane, who returned to the winner’s enclosure following a stunning first round submission loss to Jon Jones at UFC 285 back in March, stopped common-foe, Sergei Spivak with a hugely one-sided second round TKO in the main event of UFC Paris at the beginning of the month.
As for Aspinall, the Atherton native has been sidelined since he took home a similarly dominant win over Polish veteran, Marcin Tybura back in July atop a UFC Fight Night London card – marking his return to the Octagon for the first time in a year since he suffered a debilitating knee injury in his return to home soil the year prior.
And attending Gane’s own homecoming at UFC Paris earlier this month, Aspinall claimed he would most definitely fight the Frenchman if a potential title-eliminator against number two ranked contender, Sergei Pavlovich eluded him.
Ciryl Gane voices disinterest in Tom Aspinall clash again
However, according to Gane, who landed the number one rank at heavyweight with the win – a matchup against Aspinall isn’t feasible in his mind at the moment.
“I know a lot of people talk about (Tom) Aspinall, but this doesn’t make sense for me,” Ciryl Gane told MMA Fighting during a recent interview. “Like every time, with my management – they did a really great job with all of my career… and now I just want to go to the belt.”
“(I’m the) number one contender, he’s number four,” Ciryl Gane explained. “It doesn’t make sense. I just want to go now – I did it already, it was a big risk against this wrestler. So, now I don’t want to have a risk – I want to take a big risk for a big deal, you see? And I’m gonna be here for a long time, so we’re gonna have time with Tom Aspinall, for sure it’s gonna come. So, no risk for the people, we’re gonna do this fight. But now, my fight is not this one – I just want the belt so, I’m gonna go to the belt.”