Ciryl Gane is once again facing accusations of illegal fouls after his second-round knockout of Alex Pereira at UFC Freedom 250, with multiple observers claiming he landed repeated strikes to the back of Pereira’s head during the finish.
Gane won the interim heavyweight title for the second time by dropping Pereira in round two before transitioning to a front headlock and raining down elbows on the grounded opponent. A significant portion of fans and commentators online argued that many of those elbows landed on the back of Pereira’s head, which is illegal under UFC rules.
UFC reporter Adam Catterall raised the concern publicly.
Listen, Ciryl Gane was absolutely fantastic from the start of that fight, he dominated it and he pieced up Alex Pereira, but what is the point in having illegal fouls in this sport if we’re not gonna call them out? How many shots to the back of the head?
The criticism is not new for Gane. Tom Aspinall has repeatedly called him a “cheat” following their October fight, which ended in a no-contest due to an eye poke. Pereira himself flagged Gane’s fouling tendencies before the fight.
Gane is now targeting a unification fight with undisputed champion Aspinall, potentially at UFC Paris in September. Dana White has said he would consider that option.