Tag: Ciryl Gane

UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou is well aware of the threat upcoming opponent Ciryl Gane poses, but he’s confident he’ll end the Frenchman’s hype at UFC 270.

Whilst also marking the first pay-per-view of 2022, the January 22 card will feature Ngannou’s first title defense.

After tearing through Curtis Blaydes, Cain Velasquez, Junior dos Santos, and Jairzinho Rozenstruik, “The Predator” had his second shot at Stipe Miocic’s title. Having fallen short in 2018, many questioned whether the behemoth had made the necessary adjustments to battle the then-champion’s wrestling offense.

Those questions were resoundingly answered at UFC 260. After showing his improved takedown defense, Ngannou unleashed his power, and Miocic was sent to the mat unconscious during a wild exchange.

Gane, meanwhile, had his own strap wrapped around his waist five months later at UFC 265. Following main event triumphs over Rozenstruik and Alexander Volkov in 2021, “Bon Gamin” dominated Derrick Lewis to win the interim title.

The pair, who are former teammates at Paris’ MMA Factory gym, will now collide in a blockbuster unification bout to open the promotion’s PPV account for 2022.

?? 01.22.22 #undisputed pic.twitter.com/SD8nttXWJO

— Francis Ngannou (@francis_ngannou) October 23, 2021

Ngannou Thinks He’s “Just Better”

Despite Ngannou’s dominant form and scary knockouts across the past three years, many believe Gane has the necessary tools to dethrone the Cameroonian. “The Predator” has witnessed his rival’s talent first hand and is not afraid of admitting the challenge he’s facing.

“He’s good and he’s just going to get better. He’s good. He’s talented, that’s for sure, and that’s the reason why he’s there, where he’s at,” Ngannou said on his YouTube channel.

However, while he’s happy to give Gane credit where it’s due, he simply believes he’s better and will have the necessary edge to get the job done on January 22.

“Right now? I’m just better, man, I’m just the man that’s going to stop the hype, and I can’t wait to get to this fight because what’s really funny about this is everybody that talks about this fight hypes him up.” (h/t Daily Mail)

While Ngannou’s hypothesis is yet to boast evidence, he’ll have the chance to provide some when he enters the Octagon with Gane at UFC 270.

With their awkward interaction backstage at UFC 268 and the ongoing remarks about the champ’s conduct while at Fernand Lopez’s gym, this heavyweight clash is certainly heating up nicely.

Who do you think will have their hand raised at UFC 270, Francis Ngannou or Ciryl Gane?

Continue Reading Ngannou: I’m The Man Who’s Gonna Stop Ciryl Gane’s Hype at MMA News.

Francis Ngannou is disturbed by comments made by his former coach.

Francis Ngannou is preparing for his UFC heavyweight title defense. This will be Ngannou’s 14th fight in the UFC, but this one is different. His opponent, Ciryl Gane, is his former training partner, and there is a whole lot of history there between them.

Leading up to this fight, both sides have been commenting on the other. With so much background between the two France-based fighters, there is bound to be some secrets spilled.

Gane’s head coach, Fernand Lopez, once trained Nagnnou as well. Recently, he made a public comment that implied that Ngannou had tried to keep Gane out of the UFC. Lopez stated that Ngannou told UFC matchmakers that Gane was not good enough for the UFC yet.

Gane’s team thought Ngannou was trying to sabotage him because he was afraid of fighting Gane. To this end, Ngannou has now responded to these allegations from his former coach. (h/t Daily Mall)

“And recently, I saw something about him, “Ngannou said on his YouTube channel. “They sent me something like, which his coach said about me – Fernand [Lopez] – He said I told [UFC matchmaker] Mick [Maynard] that Ciryl is good but not that good or something like that. I’m like, ‘Man. This, like; this nasty.’

“You know this is not a fair game anymore. It’s not a fair game anymore. Like, I understand this position is not; you want to take everything, you want to destroy somebody. But to go after him like that, associate other people; I mean, I think this is evil. You know, but I know the man, and I know how it processed.”

Ngannou came to the UFC in 2015. He had immediate success but eventually decided to leave his France-based gym, MMA Factory. Fast forward to Gane, the MMA Factory product came to the UFC in 2019.

In addition to the story about Ngannou campaigning against Gane, Lopez has also claimed Ngannou didn’t pay his gym dues. Additionally, Ngannou recently walked right past Gane and his team backstage at UFC 268 without even a glance. All of this drama is making for a great lead-up to their huge fight that will go down on Jan. 22 at UFC 270.

Who do you think will take home the UFC heavyweight title at UFC 270, Francis Ngannou or Ciryl Gane?

Continue Reading Ngannou Denies Accusation Made By “Evil” Ex-Coach Fernand Lopez at MMA News.

UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou thinks footage of his past sparring with Ciryl Gane was made to make his opponent look promising.

Ngannou will make his first heavyweight title defense against Gane at UFC 270 in the first UFC pay-per-view of 2022. The fight will take place nearly a year after Ngannou earned the belt over Stipe Miocic at UFC 260.

Ngannou and Gane briefly trained together at MMA Factory in France, as the two were looking to build their respective brands in the UFC heavyweight division. While Ngannou has claimed that he and Gane weren’t exactly close, they had mutual respect for one another during their sessions in the gym.

After Gane defeated Derrick Lewis for the interim title at UFC 265, sparring footage of him and Ngannou went viral on social media. During a recent segment on his YouTube channel, Ngannou explained his side of the story regarding the clips.

“When I saw that footage, my first reaction was laughing. Because I know exactly what happened at those training sessions,” Ngannou said. “But this is the thing. When they want to like, do some highlight, they always choose the part of the video that they use. And they have a lot of videos like that because, at the time, they were filming our training session to promote him, his fight, and everything. So, there was a lot of footage from those few training sessions. But a lot of them never came out and would never come out. And I know for a fact that they will never come out.

“It’s about to make him look better and make me look bad, to prove that he’s the man.” (h/t Bloody Elbow)

Ngannou and Gane have had quite the buildup to their heavyweight clash. Ngannou appeared to snub Gane of a greeting backstage at UFC 268, which Ngannou later claimed was mostly due to his animosity for coach Fernand Lopez.

Gane has also downplayed Ngannou’s power in recent interviews, saying that he intends to manage his way through the champion’s barrage.

In the current times of social media becoming more prominent, leaked sparring footage is becoming more plentiful. Regardless, fans will make up their mind on the matchup when Ngannou and Gane go to battle at UFC 270.

Do you think it was fair for the Francis Ngannou/Ciryl Gane sparring footage to be released?

Continue Reading Francis Ngannou Cries Foul On Ciryl Gane Sparring Footage at MMA News.