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Francis Ngannou Reacts to Derrick Lewis vs. Ciryl Gane Interim Title Bout

UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou has weighed in on the recently announced interim heavyweight title fight between Derrick Lewis and Ciryl Gane slated for the UFC 265 main event on August 7th. ESPN’s Brett Okamoto was the first to report the booking of Lewis vs. Gane for the interim heavyweight title after the UFC reportedly […]

UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou has weighed in on the recently announced interim heavyweight title fight between Derrick Lewis and Ciryl Gane slated for the UFC 265 main event on August 7th.

ESPN’s Brett Okamoto was the first to report the booking of Lewis vs. Gane for the interim heavyweight title after the UFC reportedly attempted on numerous occasions to book Ngannou vs. Lewis, but scheduling conflicts forced the promotion to book an interim title fight in the meantime. This comes just two days after Gane defeated Alexander Volkov by unanimous decision at UFC Vegas 30.

Many around the MMA community were surprised by the news regarding the booking of an interim heavyweight title fight, including Ngannou himself. He took to Twitter to give his up-to-the-minute reaction to the big booking.

“I remember my interim title fight against Jairzinho… Oh, wait,” Ngannou tweeted.

Ngannou gave a second reaction to the Lewis vs. Gane fight after ESPN’s Ariel Helwani pointed out that he fought just once between June 2019 and March 2021 leading up to his knockout win over Stipe Miocic to get the title.

“Nothing has been right here,” Ngannou said.

Nothing has been right here https://t.co/SIeM9uEfBG

— Francis Ngannou (@francis_ngannou) June 28, 2021

It was a long road for Ngannou to finally realize UFC gold. Before his knockout in the rematch with Miocic at UFC 260, Ngannou lost to Lewis by unanimous decision before winning four in a row by knockout en route back to the second title shot against Miocic. In their first fight at UFC 220, Miocic out-classed Ngannou after an early barrage of punches and earned the relatively easy win by unanimous decision.

Since earning the title in March, Ngannou has been on a carousel of potential opponents for his first title defense. It was expected that he would face former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones next before contract negotiations never materialized. Now, after a reported scheduling conflict, Ngannou will sit out and eventually fight the winner of Lewis vs. Gane at a later date.

What are your thoughts on the surprise announcement of Derrick Lewis vs. Ciryl Gane?

Derrick Lewis vs. Ciryl Gane Set for Interim Heavyweight Title Bout

Derrick Lewis will face Ciryl Gane, and not UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, for the interim heavyweight title at UFC 265 on August 7th, as first reported by ESPN’s Brett Okamoto. The fight booking between Lewis and Gane comes just days after Gane’s win over Alexander Volkov at UFC Vegas 30, and just weeks after […]

Derrick Lewis will face Ciryl Gane, and not UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, for the interim heavyweight title at UFC 265 on August 7th, as first reported by ESPN’s Brett Okamoto.

The fight booking between Lewis and Gane comes just days after Gane’s win over Alexander Volkov at UFC Vegas 30, and just weeks after it appeared that Ngannou wouldn’t be able to defend his belt in August against Lewis. UFC president Dana White told Okamoto that the reason for the Lewis vs. Gane fight is the fact that Ngannou wasn’t able to fight in June or August.

The news shook up the MMA world on Monday and came as a big surprise to Ngannou’s camp, as it was anticipated that “The Predator” would fight Lewis for his first title defense later this summer or fall. Lewis rose as the top heavyweight contender amidst the stalled contract dispute between the UFC brass and former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones for him to move up in weight and with his big win over Curtis Blaydes earlier this year.

“This comes as a complete shock,” Ngannou’s agent Marquel Martin told Okamoto. “To make an interim title so soon, if you look at the history of this division, it comes as a surprise. We hope to get clarity and figure out something with the UFC soon.”

Ngannou finally realized UFC gold after earning the belt over Stipe Miocic by knockout at UFC 260. Ngannou was originally expected to fight Jones, then Lewis, and now will hold out and apparently face the winner of Lewis vs. Gane for his next fight.

This will be the first time that the UFC’s heavyweight division has had an interim champion since Fabricio Werdum held the interim belt following his win over Mark Hunt at UFC 180. He would go on to defeat then-champion Cain Velasquez to unify the title.

What is your reaction to the latest drama atop the UFC’s heavyweight division?

Khabib Believes McGregor Only Has One Round To Beat Poirier At UFC 264

Former UFC lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov believes that arch-rival and former-foe, Conor McGregor must dispatch common-opposition, Dustin Poirier in the opening round of their UFC 264 trilogy bout on July 10. — or he risks the latter taking over and eventually stopping him. Khabib, who vacated the undisputed lightweight championship back in March of this […]

Khabib, who vacated the undisputed lightweight championship back in March of this year following his retirement from professional mixed martial arts last October, has fought both McGregor and Poirier in the past — stopping the former with a fourth round neck crank in October 2018, and the latter via a second round rear-naked choke in September 2019.

In less than two week’s time, McGregor and Poirier will headline UFC 264 from the T-Mobile Arena — in the promotion’s return to a live gate in Las Vegas, Nevada for the first time since February of last year. The victor of the pair’s lightweight rubber match is likely to challenge minted lightweight best, Charles Oliveira for the lightweight crown before the close of this year.

Speaking with UFCRussia ahead of the third bout between McGregor and Poirier, Khabib gave his prediction on the lightweight rubber match, claiming that he’d favour the Dubliner to score a finish in the opening round if the bout only lasted the opening five minutes, however, the longer the headliner plays out, Poirier would start to take over.

“It’s the same thing as the previous fight (UFC 257),” Khabib said. “If It’s a first round finish, I’d back Conor (McGregor). From the second (round) and further, Dustin (Poirier) wins.“

Back in January on ‘Fight Island’ at UFC 257 — Poirier and McGregor rematched at lightweight, with the former handing McGregor his first professional knockout loss in mixed martial arts in the form of a second round stoppage.

With the Dubliner or Louisiana native likely to challenge Oliveira for the championship before the close of 2021, Khabib has given his thoughts on the lightweight division, claiming that the run-in will be “fun“.

“There are many fighters at the top of the rankings who haven’t won anything for a long time,” Khabib continued. “If Islam (Makhachev) wins in July (against Thiago Moises), he will have eight wins in a row and he will keep moving forward.“

“There’s such a nice composition to the division, not only the Russians but also the Brazilian — (Charles) Oliveira or Rafael dos Anjos. The Americans are also well-represented in the division; Poirier, (Justin) Gaethje and (Michael) Chandler. it’s going to be fun; like the World War… the Russians, the Americans and the Brazilians. This division has always been interesting and difficult so it will be fun by the end of the year.“

Justin Jaynes Reacts To Betting On Himself & Losing At UFC Vegas 30

Justin Jaynes has no regrets after his split decision loss to Charles Rosa at UFC Vegas 30. Jaynes made headlines before UFC Vegas 30 for announcing that he had gambled his entire purse for the event on himself. Jaynes, who was 1-3 in the UFC before the event, was confident that he would secure a win. Jaynes […]

Justin Jaynes has no regrets after his split decision loss to Charles Rosa at UFC Vegas 30.

Jaynes made headlines before UFC Vegas 30 for announcing that he had gambled his entire purse for the event on himself. Jaynes, who was 1-3 in the UFC before the event, was confident that he would secure a win.

Jaynes needed to win. He had suffered three straight losses in the UFC following a spectacular debut at UFC Vegas 3 against Frank Camacho. As most know, the UFC is quick to release fighters with three to four consecutive losses. With his UFC career on the line, Jaynes was in a must-win situation. He made a bet on himself, and his career, that he needed to win.

Jaynes, however, was unable to deliver. Though his performance split the decision, the consensus throughout the MMA community is that he lost the fight to Rosa, and the outcome was accurate. And while he replied to a few tweets post-fight, Jaynes had not released a statement until now. In a series of tweets and replies, Jaynes addressed the loss and doubled down on the decision.

U don’t know me but I promise u I will and would never regret betting anything on myself. Tough day in the office but I’d do it again

— Justin Jaynes (@JustinJaynesMMA) June 28, 2021

I said it before the fight and I’ll say it again. I was prepared for all outcomes. If anyone thinks me losing this bet is going to break me they are sadly mistaken #jaynestrained https://t.co/2jV0kAUFzV

— Justin Jaynes (@JustinJaynesMMA) June 27, 2021

Jaynes’ mentality is admirable, considering that his future in the UFC is unclear at this time. Though the promotion has not commented publicly on his bet or his future in the UFC, it has been their standard practice to release fighters with similar records. And although Jaynes said from the beginning that the bet was about the confidence he had in himself, few can deny the correlation with the current debate on fighter pay in the world of MMA.

The wager leaves many to wonder if other fighters will follow in Jaynes’ footsteps to supplement the base pay. Or will the outcome of his decision serve as a cautionary tale? Only time will tell, but we wish Jaynes all the best as he awaits his fate in the UFC.

Do you think Justin Jaynes was foolish or admirable for wagering his fight purse for UFC Vegas 30 on himself?

Diego Sanchez Open To Signing With BKFC: ‘It Would Be Fun’

Diego Sanchez is in search of a new home after being unceremoniously dropped by the UFC ahead of his retirement fight against Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone at UFC Vegas 26. A situation involving Joshua Fabia and Sanchez’s medical records brought the UFC Hall of Famer’s 16-year stint with the promotion to a slightly premature end. Since […]

Diego Sanchez is in search of a new home after being unceremoniously dropped by the UFC ahead of his retirement fight against Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone at UFC Vegas 26.

A situation involving Joshua Fabia and Sanchez’s medical records brought the UFC Hall of Famer’s 16-year stint with the promotion to a slightly premature end.

Since leaving the UFC, Sanchez has parted ways with Fabia who acted as coach and manager for ‘The Nightmare’ for the past few years. Fabia has since levelled several accusations at his former student which include drug misuse and throwing a fight. So far, Sanchez has opted to turn the other cheek rather than directly respond to these allegations.

On Friday, the 39-year-old made an appearance at a Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship press conference in Miami. Sanchez spoke about BKFC 18 and the possibility of him joining the sport.

“If I ever get into the BKB, yeah, it would be fun,” Sanchez said. “I never really liked the gloves in the UFC anyway. So, I think it’s better. You got to pick your shots. You got to be smarter. We got to probably do a boxing fight first, warm these hands up. We’re going to see. We’re going to keep everything open.”

Sanchez spoke of his great relationship with BKFC president, David Feldman.

“I like Dave, and Dave’s a good man,” Sanchez said. “He flew me out here, and it ain’t the first time he’s flown me out. Dave’s a solid guy, and I appreciate that.” (Transcribed by MMA Junkie)

Feldman has often signed high-profile MMA stars to his organisation since it launched in 2018. Paige VanZant, Rachael Ostovich, Hector Lombard, Thiago Alves and Jason Knight are just some of the names currently on board.

Do you think Diego Sanchez should link up with Bare Knuckle FC?