Ciryl Gane put on a striking clinic to pick apart Jairzinho Rozenstruik to win a comfortable unanimous decision in the heavyweight division at UFC Vegas 20.
A comfortable victory for Ciryl Gane
Gane (8-0) cruised throughout the whole fight by controlling the range with his superior reach advantage mixing in a variety of strikes. The Frenchman predominantly used his jab, lead push kick, and leg kick as Rozenstruik was unable to get into range effectively. Once he would get into range to strike, Gane simply clinched him up against the fence and used his superior wrestling to nullify “Bigi Boy”. Gane was simply faster, more efficient, and better footwork to move in and out.
All three judges gave Gane the decision with 50-45 as he remains undefeated with a record of 8-0.
Gane showed that he is adept in all areas of MMA and remains undefeated which is an incredible feat for someone who only started training MMA a few years ago. Seen by many as the future of the heavyweight division, the Frenchman has now defeated a top 5 contender and will be now viewed to be a legitimate threat to the title.
Ciryl Gane not thrilled by his performance.
However, after the fight, Gane was seen to be a little disappointed with his performance in his post-fight interview.
“I don’t make a real big show for the fans,” Gane said. “I got a big win so I’m really happy about that. This guy is tough and dangerous and I just want to manage it and I did it.
“I expected a little bit more from him, more attacks, more pressure. I was a little bit surprised by that. I’m happy.”
Understandably the fight was not as exciting as fans may have wanted for the main event, however, sometimes that is to be expected when heavyweights hit as hard as Rozenstruik did. The man from Suriname has shown multiple times that he can knock any heavyweight out with just one punch. Gane showed a very calculative approach to not get caught.
The first round started off very tentative and was more of a feeling-out process for both fighters to understand the range. Gane landed the first significant strike with a lightning-fast jab that caught Rozenstruik. It seemed clear from the start that Gane had a speed advantage both in his hand and in the footwork.
The second round saw Gane increase his output a bit more as he got more comfortable with the range. He used a variety of push kicks, jabs, and leg kicks. Rozenstruik seemed content to stay still waiting to counter instead of putting the pressure on Gane which allowed the Frenchman to patiently pick apart Rozenstruik from a distance.
As the fight went on it seemed clear Gane was in control of the fight whilst still avoiding the big shots from Rozenstruik. There was no last-minute rush from Rozenstruik to finish the fight as he did against Alistair Overeem. Gane continued to do enough from distance and used takedowns in the last round to control any sort of aggression from Rozenstruik.
Gane is probably one more win away from getting a title shot in the heavyweight division as the Frenchman will most definitely be keeping an eye on the UFC 260 title fight between UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic and Francis Ngannou in March.
“I want to be in the discussion,” said Gane. “I am 8-0. I have studied MMA just three years, I have a little experience, but I feel confident. But if you need me for something, I’m here.”
There’s a bit of a logjam at the top of the heavyweight division, but Ciryl Gane took a big step forward with his victory tonight.
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