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Serghei Spivak sticks up for UFC Paris opponent Ciryl Gane after Jon Jones loss: ‘Journalists talk too much sh*t

This weekend, Ciryl Gane will look to bounce back following a humiliating loss to current heavyweight world champion Jon Jones at UFC 285 in March. After dropping two of his last three fights, ‘Bon Gamin’ will head to the Accor Arena in his native Paris, France for a clash with top-ten heavyweight contender Serghei Spivak. […]

This weekend, Ciryl Gane will look to bounce back following a humiliating loss to current heavyweight world champion Jon Jones at UFC 285 in March.

After dropping two of his last three fights, ‘Bon Gamin’ will head to the Accor Arena in his native Paris, France for a clash with top-ten heavyweight contender Serghei Spivak. Ciryl Gane will be looking to maintain his spot near the top of the heavyweight rankings while the ‘Polar Bear’ is looking to jump into the top five and declare himself as a potential threat to reigning heavyweight king Jon Jones.

Ahead of their clash this weekend, Spivak spoke with French outlet RMC Sport about his impending showdown with Ciryl Gane. During the conversation, ‘Polar Bear’ directed some of his frustration toward journalists who have put his UFC Paris opponent through the ringer after suffering a lopsided loss to ‘Bones’ earlier this year.

“Journalists talk too much, too much sh*t,” Spivac said. “Who (out of them) can go to fight in the UFC? It’s really hard to go to fight. He (Gane) is first place in the UFC. He has good results in the UFC. These (people) talk sh*t. Ciryl needs to be focused on his life. This is not important for him” (h/t MMA News).

Serghei Spivak Respects Every Man That Steps In the Octagon with Him, Including Ciryl Gane

Ciryl Gane fell to Jon Jones just past the two-minute mark of the opening round at UFC 285 via a guillotine choke. Many were quick to criticize Gane’s performance, suggesting that the striking standout buckled under the pressure of another big moment.

Gane is 8-2 in the Octagon, his only losses coming against Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones. ‘Bon Gamin’ still has hopes of one day wrapping the undisputed UFC heavyweight title around his waist, but to get back into title contention, he’ll have to go through Ukrainian knockout artist Serghei Spivak.

The ‘Polar Bear’ has won three straight, defeating Greg Hardy, Augusto Sakai, and Derrick Lewis, with all three coming by way of finish. Serghei Spivak will look to make it four in a row, scoring the biggest win of his career in the City of Light on Saturday night.

“I can talk only good about my opponents,” Spivac added. “I respect everyone, and I respect Ciryl, too.”

‘Thug’ Rose Namajunas ready to face her fears in flyweight move: ‘I want something that scares me’

After climbing to the top of the strawweight mountain on two separate occasions, ‘Thug’ Rose Namajunas is ready for a new challenge. On September 2, the former two-time queen of the 115-pound division will make her first appearance in well over a year as she is set to make her flyweight debut against top-five contender […]

After climbing to the top of the strawweight mountain on two separate occasions, ‘Thug’ Rose Namajunas is ready for a new challenge.

On September 2, the former two-time queen of the 115-pound division will make her first appearance in well over a year as she is set to make her flyweight debut against top-five contender Manon Fiorot. The decision to move weight classes comes following her lackluster showing against Carla Esparza in May 2022.

Rose Namajunas walked into the bout with UFC gold and a heap of momentum, but she ultimately came up short, surrendering the strap to Esparza in what many fight fans were quick to call the worst title fight in the promotion’s 30-year history. With plenty of time to reflect on her fall, Namajunas is ready to pick herself up and climb to the top once again. But this time, the view will be significantly different.

Appearing on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Rose Namajunas revealed that her plan to move up a weight class was something she had always thought about. Particularly as she got older and her body began to change, making weight cuts more strenuous with each fight.

“Definitely after the Carla fight [at UFC 274], I think that was—win or lose—I was thinking about doing that anyways,” Namajunas said. “One, my body is changing, I started to mature. Early on in my career I never really cut that much weight up until the last few years. I think maybe when I fought Michelle Waterson, that was when I actually started to really put on size.

“Each fight it’s just been a little bit more and more. Even though I got better at cutting, I also felt like, this can’t be healthy. As much as I got mentally better at it, I think physically, I feel like I’m way stronger now. I also made a little bit of effort to put on a little more size, to actually intentionally get a little bigger and do a little more lifting and stuff and eating.”

Rose Namajunas Has No Interest in Fighting Zhang Weili for the Third Time

Namajunas is admittedly disinterested in a trilogy bout with reigning strawweight champion, Zhang Weili, giving her yet another reason to step out of her comfort zone and try her luck in the promotion’s stacked flyweight division.

“Weili’s the champ now, so what, I fight her a third time? I don’t know, it’s just not every interesting,” Namajunas continued. “I’ve already fought Andrade and this and that and now she’s gone back down… Weili’s the champ, so then I could just beat her again, but I don’t know, to me it’s more than that. I want something that scares me. I want to face my fears. It’s just always been a part of the plan and yeah, I could keep doing the same old thing, but as soon as this game gets redundant, I can get bored really quick and that’s not good for nobody. So I need to keep it fresh and interesting.”

During her time away from the Octagon, Namajunas had received multiple fight offers, but the chance to compete against No. 2 ranked contender Manon Fiorot was the only one that excited her enough to sign on the dotted line.

“I had gotten a lot of fight offers over the course of taking time off and that was the first time where I was like, ‘That sounds interesting,’” Namajunas said when asked about why she chose to fight Fiorot. “I thought about Paris and as much as I don’t like traveling I also don’t like a lot of other things that I also like equally. Of course, I love traveling. There’s so much to learn, there’s so much to see, and that’s just kind of like, ‘Lazy Rose doesn’t want to travel, or Comfortable Rose doesn’t want to travel,’ but all these things help me grow and they expand my horizons.

“I had one of the best experiences going to Abu Dhabi, as much as I feared doing that. Nobody knew what was happening during COVID and all that stuff, it was like the most rewarding experience ever. Even though I smashed my nose, it was also one of the best things that happened ever. As much as I don’t like these things sometimes, I know that this is medicine for me, this is good for me.”

Rose Namajunas on moving to 125lbs.#TheMMAHour pic.twitter.com/Sw0klpBqe2

— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) July 31, 2023

Fiorot goes into the bout riding an undefeated record inside the Octagon, with five straight wins against some very serious talent, including Victoria Leonardo, Tabitha Ricci, Mayra Bueno Silva, Jennifer Maia, and Katlyn Chookagian. With a W over Rose Namajunas, Fiorot will undoubtedly be next in line for a flyweight title opportunity.

“Overall, I just think Manon as an opponent is exciting too,” Namajunas said. “She’s a true martial artist. She’s not just a fighter or an athlete. She’s all of those things, but I remember watching her, I think she came off of the Contender Series, ‘She’s pretty badass. She has some real striking skills.’

“I like girls that can strike. I like girls that are overall MMA well-rounded, which she is, but definitely her karate background and her style and everything, even her little attitude, her whole swagger, that’s something that brings out the competitor in me and I love that” (h/t MMA Fighting).

Ciryl Gane issues warning to Tom Aspinall following UFC London call out: ‘Be careful what you wish for’

Former interim heavyweight champion, Ciryl Gane has issued a warning to Tom Aspinall following the Manchester native’s stunning win at UFC London overnight, urging the contender to be careful for what he wishes, after he offered to fight the Frenchman in a title-eliminator in his next Octagon walk. Gane, the current number two ranked heavyweight […]

Gane, the current number two ranked heavyweight contender, is slated to make his Octagon return atop a UFC Fight Night Paris card in September, taking on soon-to-be common-foe, Sergei Spivak in a headlining clash.

The former interim heavyweight champion has been sidelined from active competition since March of this year, suffering a stunning opening round guillotine choke loss to Jon Jones in the pair’s vacant heavyweight championship battle.

As for Aspinall, the fan-favorite British contender returned triumphantly at UFC London last night in the capital, stopping Polish veteran, Marcin Tybura with a massive first round TKO – emerging from the headlining slot completely unscathed in a career-highlight performance.

Linked with a title fight against incumbent gold holder, Jones off the back of his return to winning-ways against perennial contender, Tybura last night, Aspinall laid out a roadmap to his premiere title challenge, claiming he would first fight either Gane or former opponent, Spivak first and foremost.

“I’m gonna go to Paris, I’m going to sit front row for Ciryl Gane vs. Sergei Spivak,” Tom Aspinall told Michael Bisping following his UFC London win during his post-fight Octagon interview. “I’m gonna beat the winner, then I’m gonna beat Jon Jones.”

Ciryl Gane issues stern warning to Tom Aspinall following UFC London

And while Jones has welcomed a future title defense against Aspinall following his November title defense against Stipe Miocic at UFC 295, Gane has urged the Atherton native to watch his wishes.

“Great performance, Tom (Aspinall), careful what you wish for,” Ciryl Gane tweeted. “See you in Paris.”

Ciryl Gane plays down speed of Jon Jones in reaction to UFC 285 title loss: ‘He was not fast’

Ahead of his return to the Octagon at UFC Fight Night Paris in September, former interim heavyweight champion, Ciryl Gane has played down the perceived speed and quickness of Jon Jones at the heavyweight limit – claiming the Endicott native “was not fast” during their one-sided UFC 285 title affair. Gane, the current two ranked […]

Gane, the current two ranked heavyweight contender, faced off with divisional newcomer, former two-time light heavyweight champion, Jones at UFC 285 back in March – with the duo competing for vacant heavyweight spoils.

And suffering a dominant opening round loss, French contender, Gane was submitted early in the first frame with a guillotine choke – suffering just his second professional loss following a prior title unification decision blemish against promotional alum, Francis Ngannou.

Ciryl Gane explains how Jon Jones wasn’t overwhelmingly quick at UFC 285

However, according to the incoming UFC Paris main event feature, Jones was not particularly fast during their UFC 285 headlining clash, instead chalking the loss to his own ability – or lack thereof to get his feet moving in tandem with his body.

“I don’t know why exactly, but I cannot manage my distance very well during some moments, and I did a mistake,” Ciryl Gane said whilst reflecting on the bout during an interview with MMA Junkie reporter, Farah Hannoun. “It wasn’t possible to manage the distance, and I did some stuff to break this atmosphere, and I did a mistake at this moment. Maybe he (Jon Jones) knew already I’m going to do this mistake, and he took his opportunity.”

“He was not fast,” Ciryl Gane explained. “Maybe he was not fast, but I was not good, too.I didn’t manage my distance. I was not good, but I remember he was not fast. He didn’t have fast hands. He had power because he touched me. I don’t remember where, but he landed punches with power, but not fast.”

Booked to headline the second edition of UFC Paris following a knockout win over Australian contender, Tai Tuivasa in France last year, Gane is slated to take on fellow European talent, Sergey Spivak at the Accor Arena in September.

‘Thug’ Rose Namajunas tipped to struggle amidst move to flyweight: ‘I don’t know why she’s coming up’

Scottish standout Joanne Wood believes former two-time UFC strawweight world champion ‘Thug’ Rose Namajunas will struggle in her move to the flyweight division. Wood made her promotional debut alongside Namajunas on The Ultimate Fighter: A Champion Will Be Crowned in 2014. The two women were part of the field of strawweight contenders vying for the […]

Scottish standout Joanne Wood believes former two-time UFC strawweight world champion ‘Thug’ Rose Namajunas will struggle in her move to the flyweight division.

Wood made her promotional debut alongside Namajunas on The Ultimate Fighter: A Champion Will Be Crowned in 2014. The two women were part of the field of strawweight contenders vying for the opportunity to become the first-ever 115-pound champion in the UFC. Wood came up short in her efforts, succumbing to a second-round submission attempt by Namajunas during their quarter-final matchup. Despite the loss, Wood still earned herself a contract with the promotion and proceeded to compete three more times at strawweight before making the permanent move to flyweight.

Speaking with Drake Riggs of MMA Mania, Wood suggested that Rose Namajunas could run into some obstacles at flyweight, referencing her own transition from 115 to 125 in 2018.

“I feel like she will struggle because I know I’ve been in there with these girls and they are like so much bigger than the Strawweights,” Wood said. “In the past, I have struggled with that, but Rose is a completely different fighter to me (laughs).

“I was shocked at that [news],” she continued. “I don’t know why she’s coming up, but she’s made that decision and I’m sure she’ll go with it and walk with it.”

‘Thug’ Rose will make her flyweight debut in September as she meets No. 2 ranked contender Manon Fiorot at UFC Paris.

Rose Namajunas’ move to flyweight is preceded by her unceremonious loss at the hands of Carla Esparza in May 2022. ‘Thug’ Rose surrendered the strawweight world title to Esparza in a bout dubbed by many as the worst title fight in UFC history. Interestingly enough, Esparza also defeated Namajunas in the TUF 20 tournament finals to become the inaugural strawweight champion nearly a decade ago.

Rose Namajunas Will Find Plenty of Competition in a Stacked Flyweight Division

Ready for a brand new setting and a bevy of fresh matchups, Namajunas will be a welcome addition to a flyweight division that has seen a plethora of world-class talent come out of the woodwork in recent years.

“As far as the division itself, it’s crazy to see because when I was coming up I was like, ‘Yep, just watch. In five years, this is gonna be the division,’” Wood said. “Once it kind of settled, everyone was moving up, everyone was moving down. I feel like now we’re in contention with strawweight of being very, very exciting. It’s just great to see it all resolve, everyone find their weight and find all these up-and-comers as well. It’s great, it’s exciting and I’m glad to be a part of it.”

On July 29, ‘JoJo’ will return to the Octagon for a flyweight clash with Brazilian standout Priscila Cachoeira. Wood will look to score back-to-back wins after snagging a split decision victory over Luana Carolina in March.

“I’m excited this kind of fight plays into my game, I feel very well,” Wood said. “I know the fans will love it. Her style is like she’s coming to throw that right hand and land that right hand and that’s perfect. I love that.

“Looking at a technical stance coming from my Muay Thai background, counter and capitalize on that with my kicks and blah, blah, blah,” she added. “The other side of me is like, ‘Man, I just like getting in there and getting bloody.’ I know she’s probably gonna land one, my nose is gonna bleed, but I don’t care. So, it’s gonna bring out that discipline side but also that, ‘You know what? We’re just in a fight.’”

Rose Namajunas’ UFC return, flyweight move questioned: ‘It really is the craziest thing I’ve ever seen’

Rose Namajunas, a former two-time undisputed strawweight champion, has seen her impending flyweight division debut and UFC Fight Night Paris return dissected by the undefeated, Tatiana Suarez – with the grappler lamenting a failed dream pairing with the ex-gold holder. Namajunas, the current number two ranked strawweight contender, has been sidelined since she co-headlined UFC […]

Namajunas, the current number two ranked strawweight contender, has been sidelined since she co-headlined UFC 274 back in May of last year in Phoenix, Arizona – suffering a forgettable unanimous decision loss to former-foe, Carla Esparza – dropping her strawweight title to The Ultimate Fighter winner.

And slated to make her first outing since suffering her second title loss last summer, Namajunas, a staple under the tutelage of both partner, Pat Barry, and head coach, Trevor Wittman, is booked to feature on the main card of UFC Paris in September – taking on the surging top-contender, Manon Fiorot on enemy territory.

Rose Namajunas’ impending move to flyweight has been broken down

Sharing her thoughts on Rose Namajunas’ incoming 125 pound debut, Suarez, who herself made a stunning Octagon return from injury earlier this year, lamented missing a fight with the Wisconsin native, however, questioned the reasoning for her flyweight leap.

“It’s really the craziest thing I’ve ever seen, I’ve been wanting to fight her (Rose Namajunas),” Tatiana Suarez said during an appearance on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani. “Because, I’m like, ‘Yeah, I’m back to 115 (pounds) – maybe I could fight Rose,’ and it’s like, she’s going back to 125 (pounds). I’m like – [it’s] crazy.”

“Whenever I say I want to fight her, it’s not because I want to go beat her up, or something like that, I don’t like her,” Suarez continued. “I just think she’s such a good fighter. Like, I’ll watch her and I’m like, amazed because how great she is.”

11-5 as a professional, Namajunas, who has twice captured undisputed gold at the strawweight limit, holds notable wins over the likes of Angela Hill, Paige VanZant, Tecia Torres, Karolina Kowalkiewicz, Michelle Waterson-Gomez, Joanna Jedrzejczyk, Jessica Andrade, and current champion, Zhang Weili.