Ciryl Gane doesn\u2019t have overwhelming support heading into UFC 321 according to the oddsmakers, but there\u2019s a chance a much more notable voice that could be in his corner\u2014metaphorically speaking.<\/p>\n
This Saturday, Gane gets his third chance to become undisputed UFC heavyweight champion when he fights Tom Aspinall in a headlining bout in Abu Dhabi. The opportunity arose when Jon Jones – who the promotion first recognized as its undisputed champion in 2023 after he defeated Gane for a vacant belt at UFC 285 – announced a retirement this past June, ensuring that a unification bout with then-interim champion Aspinall would not happen.<\/p>\n
Aspinall had publicly called Jones out for over a year and even when he said he was willing to move on, fan fervor for the matchup remained. If Jones is tuning in this Saturday, Gane thinks there\u2019s a chance he could have the former two-division champion on his side.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe, because I think Tom disrespected him a little bit,\u201d Gane told Full Send MMA<\/a>. \u201cSo maybe he\u2019s going to be on my side. Maybe, but yes, he retired, now it\u2019s our turn, and we will see this Saturday.\u201d<\/p>\n Jones shortly ended his retirement when President Donald Trump announced plans to hold a UFC event at the White House to commemorate July 4 Independence Day in 2026 (the date has since tentatively been moved to June), with Jones stating his intention to fight on the historic card. Should that happen, light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira has mentioned wanting to meet Jones in a heavyweight bout, seemingly disregarding the current state of the division.<\/p>\n With all of that chatter looming over Saturday\u2019s main event and Gane hovering around 3-to-1 underdog odds (according to FanDuel<\/a>), it\u2019s fair to ask if \u201cBon Gamin\u201d is affected by any of the talk.<\/p>\n \u201cNo, for the people who know me, I\u2019m really not focused on the outside, what the people think, the bettors,\u201d Gane said. \u201cI only focus on myself and on my strengths. If you want to do a real statistic, you must understand all of my career, all of his career, the opponent, how he finished, and day after day I can see the opinion of the people changing a little bit because when you think a little bit more, you see, OK, it\u2019s not going to be an easy fight.\u201d<\/p>\n Gane still thinks about the Jones loss, which saw him submitted by \u201cBones\u201d in 2:04. However, rather than be weighed down by the experience, Gane chose to grow from it and he hopes that the lessons learned from that setback finally propel him to the top of the heavyweight ladder.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery time when you have a new challenge, you have a new experience, I got some big losses,\u201d Gane said. \u201cWe\u2019re talking about Jon Jones, I learned a lot from this fight, really. I fixed a lot of things from this fight. I grew up, my mindset is really different since this fight, and I was already detached from it. I got my real world with my family, all that stuff like that. That\u2019s why I don\u2019t have too much pressure. I\u2019m not too much in the social media, and that\u2019s why I don\u2019t do too much trash talk or some stuff like that because for me it\u2019s my job, I love my job, I love sports, I\u2019m a competitor. I\u2019m this kind of guy.\u201d<\/p>\n EZ. Jack Della Maddalena\u2019s coach thinks Islam Makhachev could be an easier fight<\/a> than Belal Muhammad in some areas.<\/p>\n Memories. Dustin Poirier is missing the fight game<\/a>.<\/p>\n Blunder. Matt Brown can\u2019t believe what he saw from referee Dan Miragliotta<\/a> and the commission at UFC Vancouver.<\/p>\n Unpredictable. Jailton Almeida shares his thoughts on a potential Jon Jones vs. Alex Pereira fight<\/a>.<\/p>\n Great. UFC CEO Dana White crows about events selling out without announced main events<\/a>.<\/p>\n MMA Fighting\u2019s Mike Heck chats it up with Dustin Poirier and Bruce Buffer.<\/p>\n 20 Questions with the champ.<\/p>\n Michael Bisping\u2019s picks for UFC 321.<\/p>\n Fighter vs. Writer. MMA Fighting\u2019s Damon Martin and UFC legend Matt Brown try to figure out what referee Dan Miragliotta was doing at UFC Vancouver, plus a look ahead to UFC 321.<\/p>\n SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE<\/p>\n The definitive fight week schedule.<\/p>\n Get ready for Jose Aldo with hair.<\/p>\n Amazing they even made it to the cage, apparently.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t want to go to Head Kick City, thanks.<\/p>\n See y\u2019all in the World Series this Friday \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n If you find something you\u2019d like to see in the Morning Report, hit up @AlexanderKlee<\/a> or @JedKMeshew<\/a> on Twitter and let us know about it. Also, follow MMAFighting on Twitter<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, TikTok<\/a>, and like us on Facebook<\/a>.<\/p>\n