Daniel Cormier says it is time to stop questioning Ciryl Gane’s place among the UFC’s elite heavyweights after his second-round stoppage of Alex Pereira at UFC Freedom 250, arguing that Gane has consistently proven himself and been consistently underrated.
Cormier made the comments on his YouTube channel.
Ciryl Gane is the real deal. I don’t understand why, for so long, we have all tried to bypass Ciryl Gane as one of the best heavyweights, if not the best heavyweight in the world. He has told you time and time again he belongs. He showed once again why he is so highly regarded in this division, finishing Alex Pereira in a standup fight.
Cormier highlighted a specific tactical element that he felt defined the performance.
What Ciryl Gane did beautifully was he showed Pereira takedowns, he showed him wrestling, and by doing that, he was able to get Pereira thinking about all of his skills. We said before the fight that if Ciryl showed up like he did against Tom Aspinall, Pereira would have problems. He showed up like that.
Gane’s win sets up a rematch with undisputed heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall. Their first fight at UFC 321 ended in a no-contest after Gane accidentally poked Aspinall in both eyes. Aspinall has expressed openness to facing Gane in Paris in September.
