Former UFC “champ-champ” Daniel Cormier believes Ciryl Gane is a special heavyweight.
Gane’s hard work inside the Octagon leads him to an interim UFC heavyweight title opportunity this weekend. He will meet Derrick Lewis in the main event of UFC 265 (peep the MMA News staff predictions here). The action is being held inside the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.
Cormier will serve as a color commentator for UFC 265. During an edition of ESPN’s DC & RC Show, Cormier explained why he feels the world of MMA hasn’t seen a heavyweight quite like Ciryl Gane.
“I feel, honestly, [Ciryl Gane is] the evolution of mixed martial arts at the heavyweight division. I know Francis [Ngannou] is big and Francis is powerful; we’ve seen guys like that before — Derrick Lewis is like that. We have not seen a Ciryl Gane though, a guy that moves in the way that he moves, that can pick you apart, that can keep you at range, and do the things that he’s done.”
Gane is a perfect 9-0 in his pro MMA career thus far. In his most recent outing back in June, he defeated Alexander Volkov via unanimous decision.
Lewis is riding a four-fight winning streak. He knocked out Curtis Blaydes with one punch in his last bout back in February. Lewis is going into this bout as the underdog. Gane is the -355 favorite, while Lewis is the +270 underdog according to FanDuel.
UFC 265 will also feature what many expect to be a bantamweight barn burner between Jose Aldo and Pedro Munhoz. Michael Chiesa vs. Vicente Luque, Tecia Torres vs. Angela Hill, and Song Yadong vs. Casey Kenney will also be featured on the main card.
