Are sporting achievements always appreciated at their fair value? Saturday March 4 (around 6 a.m. Paris time, Sunday), Ciryl Gane on the occasion of achieving a major one against the American Jon Jones, considered the best fighter in the history of mixed martial arts ( mma). In the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (Nevada), the one nicknamed “Good Kid” will try to win the UFC heavyweight title. A feat that no Frenchman has ever achieved.
Even more than the acquisition of the prestigious belt, it is the profile of his evening adversary which will give luster to the performance. “If I beat Jones, I’ll be the first to beat him, argued Gane in an interview with RMC Sport. A win would be a big leap in my career. Facing Jones, it would bring even more pleasure and recognition. »
If this is the first experience of the American in heavyweight, this one, now 35 years old, has a stunning career in the light heavyweight category. Between 2008 and 2020, he was never beaten on a regular basis in the octagon. He totals 26 victories out of 28 disputed fights: he was disqualified for prohibited blows whereas he largely dominated his compatriot Matt Hamill; in 2017, his victory by K.-O. during his fight against Daniel Cormier was later changed to “no decision” due to testing positive for steroids.
In 2011, Jone Jones became the youngest champion in UFC history. Since then, he has terrorized the competition and impressed in his multiple fights to retain the belt. “He is considered the GOAT [le “greatest of all time”, un titre honorifique qui alimente les débats dans chaque sport populaire aux Etats-Unis] », summarizes Aldric Cassata, MMA coach of the Boxing squad, in Nice. A former college Greco-Roman wrestling champion, the native of Rochester, New York, is renowned for the quality of his wrestling.
An area which is precisely the weak point of the French. Ciryl Gane comes from muay thai, Thai boxing, and prefers to use percussion techniques with fists, feet, knees or elbows rather than going to the ground. A deficiency identified by his trainer, Fernand Lopez, after the defeat on January 22, 2022 against Cameroonian Francis Ngannou, during Bon Gamin’s first fight for the heavyweight belt. “I had promised that he was going to die in wrestling, and he ate it”, explains the coach. Dagestani MMA fighter Shamil Gaziev and French-Chechen wrestler Zelimkhan Umkhadjiev helped him perfect this area.
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