Ciryl Gane Early Favourite To Defeat Francis Ngannou

Published on August 8th, 2021 1:07 pm EST
Written By: Dave Manuel


Things worked out perfectly for UFC President Dana White on Saturday night, as Ciryl Gane mopped Derrick Lewis to win the interim Heavyweight championship.

This sets up a marquee Heavyweight unification bout between Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane, likely to take place in early 2022.

Why is this a big deal for the UFC? MMA laws recently changed in France, and the company recently signed a TV deal in the country.

What better way to make a splash in a new market than with a Heavyweight unification match involving a French fighter?

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Ciryl Gane might have the formula to defeat the hard-hitting Ngannou.

Remember the first fight between Stipe Miocic and Francis Ngannou? Miocic fought a very smart fight, keeping out of the range of Ngannou's power shots before eventually grinding him down.

Gane fights like this as well. He won't overwhelm you with power, but he is basically a perfect technical fighter who won't get drawn into a slugfest with Ngannou.

Ngannou is going to have a very tough challenge in Gane, who is an extremely impressive Heavyweight fighter.

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Prior to the Gane/Lewis fight, Ngannou was a comfortable favourite to defeat Gane, as he was listed at -175 to win.

After Gane's masterful performance against Lewis, the interim Heavyweight champion is now a small favourite to win.

Here are the current betting odds, courtesy of an offshore sportsbook:

Ciryl Gane, -130
Francis Ngannou, +110

As you can see, this fight is essentially a coin flip.

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Will Ngannou have a chip on his shoulder leading into this fight, given the disrespect that the UFC has shown him?

This should be a fantastic fight, and will likely be one of the most interesting Heavyweight tilts in a long while.