Frenchman Ciryl Gane once again has the chance to wriet the history of French MMA against Tom Aspinall, the heavyweight champion (+93kg) during UFC 321, this Saturday (from 10 p.m.).
Ciryl Gane’s Last Chance
For the third time in his career, Ciryl gane (35 years old, 13 victories and 2 defeats) has the opportunity to make French MMA shine by becoming the first French fighter undisputed champion within the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Beaten at the end of the suspense,at the decision,by the Cameroonian Francis Ngannou and humiliated by Jon Jones (submission) during his previous attempt,“Bon Gamin” no longer has the right to make mistakes. The Vendéen from La Roche-sur-Yon has not escaped criticism from fans who accuse him of not having taken his latest fights seriously… especially following his acting roles on the big screen such as in the film KO
Despite the resounding failure against Jones which could have pushed him towards the exit, Ciryl Gane got up. Thanks to victories against Serghei Spivac (KO) and the Russian alexander volkov (decision), the Frenchman even got one last chance to accomplish his “personal quest“. A decision contested by some who do not understand why he benefits from so many opportunities, though, gane is in first place in the UFC heavyweight rankings and is thus the most legitimate to challenge the champion. Ciryl Gane knows it, it’s now or never to write the history of French MMA.
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Tom Aspinall, the new king of the category
A true phenomenon stands in front of Ciryl Gane. The Englishman Tom Aspinall (32 years old, 15 wins against 3 losses) is obviously not to be taken lightly.Hoisted (almost) to the top of the heavyweight category following his express victory against Serguei Pavlovich (KO in the first round), the undisputed champion had to wait (a lot) to dislodge Jon Jones. In reality,Aspinall couldn’t even face the American and found himself having to defend his interim belt against Curtis Blaydes (success by TK0)… Almost unheard of. After the “retirement” of Jon Jones (he announced his return to participate in the UFC event organized in particular by Donald Trump at the White House), Tom Aspinall has finally reached the Grail and will therefore put his undisputed champion title on the line against Ciryl Gane for the first time in his career.
Who is the favorite?
For this clash at the top, the predictions are clear: as against Ngannou and Jones, Ciryl Gane appears as an “outsider” against Tom Aspinall. The Englishman, introduced to martial arts by his father andy, went through Brazilian Ju-jitsu (derived from judo and ju-jitsu) before making his debut in MMA. A course which should give him a good margin of maneuver if the fight were to venture to the ground (3 victories by submission).Problem: Aspinall also excels in terms of his movement speed and with his fists, as his last eight opponents can attest. None of them lasted more than two rounds. He has never even fought a fight to completion as his UFC debut.The Englishman’s endurance is thus the big question mark surrounding the British champion.
Ciryl Gane benefits from extraordinary experiance at this level of competition thanks to his two previous fights for the belt. Failures which allowed the Vendéen to take into account “maturity» and learn “enormously» before once again encountering a final obstacle in his path. The Frenchman has already fought three fights until the 5th round and notably made an impression during his clash with the Cameroonian Francis Ngannou whom he pushed to his limits.
