And the champion remains the champion: Francis Ngannou retained this Sunday morning at dawn at French time, his UFC world heavyweight belt.
The former homeless of the Parisian streets dominated the French Ciryl Gane.
The “Predator” beat the “Good Kid” to take up the nicknames of the two colossi.
🗣️💬 "I knew it was going to be a difficult opponent. I'm surprised he held out until the end"
Francis Ngannou's reaction after his victory over Ciryl Gane.
#NgannouGaneRMC pic.twitter.com/PEnx5G2g6v
– RMC Sport Combat (@RMCSportCombat) January 23, 2022
It is a little after 7 a.m. this Sunday in France when Francis Ngannou raises an arm towards the sky of Anaheim in the suburbs of Los Angeles where the very first Disneyland in history was built in 1955. The judges by decision unanimous decide that he remains the strongest man in the world "the baddest man on planet earth" to use the words of the UFC.
Head down, his opponent Ciryl Gane suspects it at the time of the verdict that no one is discussing.
The score ?
48-47, 48-47, 49-46 in favor of Ngannou: “It's a great relief, slips the winner at the microphone of RMC Sport leaving the cage.
My last 10 months have not been easy.
I had several psychological pressures but I knew that the most important thing was to keep a cool head.
»
Ngannou won on floor
Francis Ngannou wins at the end of the regulations, five very close rounds. They were less spectacular than expected. But nothing really went as planned either. Some saw Ngannou land a mule strike as he has the secret to quickly send Gane to the mat, completely knocked out. The others thought that Gane was going to wear down his rival, five years older than him, by playing on his speed. It was a priori the battle plan of the two men. But it was forgotten that Ngannou made progress everywhere.
He is no longer just this colossus capable of knocking out an elephant and who has never spent much time in France as he quickly defeats his opponents.
It was on the ground this time that the Franco Cameroonian won.
And this is not where we expected the best: “The ground was a possibility, I was more confident in my fight, continues the champion, still at the microphone of RMC Sport.
I train with someone who is very famous in this field.
For some time, I feel that my level is changing but I had not yet had the opportunity to prove it.
“If he played on his grips on the ground, it is also because Francis Ngannou was injured, a torn anterior cruciate ligament of the knee, at the beginning of the year which deprived him of a lot of possibilities. .
Francis Ngannou's fight #UFC270 pic.twitter.com/LJBVyYom36
— La Sueur (@LaSueur_off) January 23, 2022
And yet, Ciryl Gane has tried everything.
Yes, the pupil of Fernand Lopez in MMA was courageous, solid.
The French started the fight better, varying his shots and thanks to better mobility in the cage.
He landed a few back kicks, including one well taken to the neck by his opponent, and full-face jabs.
But Ngannou, dominated and upset to feel a little behind in points, found the solution in the third round, in a register that is not necessarily his: taking the ground therefore.
Countering a high kick from Gane, Ngannou flipped Gane in the air and tackled him to the ground, landing on it with all his weight (115 kg).
Certainly the image of this fight, in the eyes of the public and certainly of the judges.
Ngannou then knocked the Frenchman to the ground several times, using his strength to exhaust him without hitting him violently with his fists, his usual strong point.
His opponent caught in his rings like a huge snake, Ngannou then only had to wear him down to exhaustion.
A revenge in Paris maybe unless...
In the end, Ngannou won, adding a 17th victory to his record (against 3 defeats) to inflict Gane his first setback in 11 fights. "I'm sorry, laments Ciryl Gane, still on RMC Sport. I know I did not disappoint. Hot, I realize that it was a good performance. But kudos to him who did exactly the right thing to win me over. He is powerful, he is powerful, I knew it. I'm sorry because I wanted to party but I'm not really in the mood for that. Ciryl Gane is 31 years old, only three in MMA behind him and the whole future ahead.
Ciryl Gane's reaction after her loss to Francis Ngannou.
🗣️💬 "I'm so sorry. Congratulations to Francis"
👏 Still so humble even in defeat.
#NgannouGaneRMC pic.twitter.com/kxVFXSTjYy
– RMC Sport Combat (@RMCSportCombat) January 23, 2022
This fight, less spectacular than expected because it was more tactical, called for revenge.
What more beautiful setting than Paris to organize it?
The UFC, the world's largest MMA league, promises to come and organize in France as soon as the pandemic has receded and will allow its great barnum to travel without constraint.
Yes, what could be better than Paris where the two giants started for a revenge?
Except that there is a catch: Francis Ngannou may have played his last fight with the UFC.
The champion is cold with his bosses.
He considers himself underpaid and has a dream he already had when he slept in his underground car park in Paris in 2013. He wants to become a professional boxer.
Rather than Ciryl Gane, he wants to face Tyson Fury, the world heavyweight champion but in the noble art.
He said it again this Sunday: “Everything is possible for the future.
We have to resolve the situation with the UFC, which has been very tense lately.
I have the maximum number of cards in my hand.
Either they'll manage to negotiate or they'll release me.
I fight freedom and independence, that's all.
I have boxing in the back of my mind, it's one of the options to consider.
My eyes are open, I'm not going to spend my life in the UFC.
“Where he is the now undisputed master.