No.1-ranked UFC heavyweight contender Ciryl Gane recently shed some light on his epic fight with Tai Tuivasa.
Last year, at UFC Paris, ‘Bon Gamin’ headlined against ‘Bam Bam’ in a vicious brawl. Gane secured the win late into the third round, brutally KO’ing Tuivasa with a series of punches. The hotly contested bout saw Gane also get dropped courtesy of ‘Bam Bam’s notoriously hard haymaker.
Gane’s next fight sees him back in the UFC Heavyweight Championship picture. Opposite him in the cage this weekend is none other than perennial GOAT-contender Jon Jones. The longtime light heavyweight kingpin is back in action after three long years of heavyweight preparation.
For Gane, this is his second shot at the undisputed mantle. Last year, he came unstuck against then-champion Francis Ngannou when ‘The Predator’ utilized wrestling to keep the Muay Thai maestro down.
“Unfortunately, Tai Tuivasa Touched Me” – Ciryl Gane
During a recent interview with Daniel Cormier, ‘Bon Gamin’ discussed his war with Tuivasa. Cormier harkened back to some prior analysis he’d done on Gane’s ‘inner dog’ when the going gets tough in the cage. Gane then shed some light on his killer mindset when it comes to combat.
“All of my team know that when I need to go in this way in the gym, even before MMA, when I was in Muay Thai, my mindset was only dog-style,” Gane said. “So yes, we know what to do on this way. And yes, unfortunately, Tai Tuivasa touched me, and he made a mistake.”
Cormier went on to joke around with ‘Bon Gamin’ about Tuivasa potentially seeing him as a “b***h” after he got knocked down. From there, Gane further expounded upon his in-cage frame of mind.
“I got no choice, because he’s [Tuivasa] looking at me like [a b***h],” Gane said, before explaining his mindset at that point. “‘I’m [Tuivasa] gonna finish you, I’m gonna knock you down,’ okay, you want to finish me? Let’s go, I’m going to [get the finish].”
UFC 285 could be make-or-break for Gane in the heavyweight title scene for the foreseeable future. A win over Jones would solidify him as one of the big dogs of his generation. A loss, however, could leave him waiting for some time before he gets anywhere near the title again.
How do you think Ciryl Gane will fare at UFC 285?