December 7, 2024, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA: CIRYL GANE 13-2-0 of La Roche-sur-Yon, France defeats ALEXANDER VOLKOV 38-10-0 of Moscow, Russia by split decision 29-28,28-29,29-28 during the UFC 310 event at the T Mobile Arena, Las Vegas Las Vegas USA – ZUMAo117 20241207_zsp_o117_061 Copyright: xMikaelxOnax
Ciryl Gane quickly rose through the ranks in the heavyweight division upon his professional debut. Even before he was signed to the UFC in the summer of 2019, he already had a championship belt on his mantle at home.
In only his second professional MMA appearance, Gane secured the TKO Heavyweight Championship. Ciryl Gane’s meteoric rise only continued from there. By August of 2019, he’d find himself on the UFC’s active roster and the ascent kept going.
Due to a rash of cancellations to planned fights caused by both the COVID-19 crisis, opponent withdrawals and, in the case of Ante Delija, contractual issues with the Professional Fighters League, it took Gane until December of 2020 to even so much as compete again, but on Dec. 12, 2020, he secured a second-round knockout by way of elbows.
December 7, 2024, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA: CIRYL GANE 13-2-0 of La Roche-sur-Yon, France defeats ALEXANDER VOLKOV 38-10-0 of Moscow, Russia by split decision 29-28,28-29,29-28 during the UFC 310 event at the T Mobile Arena, Las Vegas Las Vegas USA – ZUMAo117 20241207_zsp_o117_061 Copyright: xMikaelxOnax
Ciryl Gane Takes Interim Gold in 10th Career Professional Appearance
In the summer of 2021, Derrick Lewis came calling for the then-9-0 Ciryl Gane. At stake during UFC 265, the UFC Interim Heavyweight Championship. Gane and “The Black Beast” got to the third round of an advertised five inside Toyota Center in Houston, with the former finishing Lewis with ground and pound shots.
Just 10 fights into his professional career, he was a UFC champion. Be that as it may, glory at the highest of mountains can often be fleeting.
As the calendar shifted to 2022, Gane found himself on the losing end of a unanimous decision at the hands of Francis Ngannou in Anaheim during UFC 270, thus spoiling his bid for the permanent championship at 265 lbs. It’s been a while for Ciryl Gane to get back to this point, but he’s on the cusp of championship glory for a third time against current UFC Heavyweight Champion Tom Aspinall in the latter’s first defense of the belt since being elevated to permanent champion last summer.
Jon Jones Defeat Forced Alteration in Strategy
In March of 2023, Ciryl Gane found himself bidding for the title of Baddest Man on the Planet for the second time in as many years. That night, the now-retired Jon Jones was the man on the other side of the cage and “Bones” took the then-vacant strap, making Gane 0-for-2 in undisputed UFC championship fights.
This forced “Bon Gamin” to make an adjustment to his gameplan, something he discussed during UFC 321 Countdown.
“When I started the fight [against Jones,] I was not there,” Ciryl Gane said. “I was absent and unfortunately, I made a mistake and what is done is done. After my loss against Jones, a lot of things changed: More questions. ‘Why did you do that? Do you really want that?’ Now, it’s different than before. This was my mindset: Revenge.”
Since switching up his strategy, the 14-2 Gane has won two contests in a row, including a Dec. 7, 2024 split decision victory against Alexander Volkov in UFC 310.
Ciryl Gane’s Last Opportunity at Heavyweight Gold?
Given that Ciryl Gane’s first two title fights in the UFC ended in defeat, one would think that his chances at ascending to the top of the mountain at 265 lbs are running low. Depending upon what happens over the weekend at UFC 321 inside Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, it could very well be now or never for a shot at the heavyweight title.
However, the statistics of the title lineage at heavyweight speak for themselves. Consider this:
Since the UFC Heavyweight Championship was inaugurated in 1997, 10 out of the 18 different men who have held the championship on a permanent basis have made at least one successful defense of the strap at some point during their runs as titleholder. Ciryl Gane is used to high stakes under the UFC banner, with Saturday’s title fight being the fourth in his UFC tenure, counting both interim and permanent championship bids.
Final Thoughts
This is a man who’s been down this road before, but will Ciryl Gane finally secure the permanent championship? Tune in on Saturday night and find out.