Ciryl Gane, who will face Francis Ngannou on Saturday January 22 at UFC 270, has opened up about his opponent and ex-training partner.
A few days before trying to become the first French champion of the UFC, the world’s largest MMA organization, the “Bon Gamin” spoke of the approach of this clash against the Cameroonian he knows for having rubbed shoulders with him at the MMA Factory in Paris.
“It’s different, not because he’s Francis but because he’s the champion right now,” Ciryl Gane said in an interview with The MMA Hour. And the champion is a very tall fighter, who has a lot of power, and he’s the final boss of my video game. But like every time, if I make a mistake, it will be okay. If I lose, it’s OK. All the fights of my career have gone like this. But today, yes, I want to take the last step. That’s why it’s a little different. ”
A few weeks ago, the two men had crossed paths at Madison Square Garden in New York and to everyone’s surprise, Francis Ngannou had dodged Ciryl Gane as well as Fernand Lopez, his former trainer, who now leads the Frenchman.
“For me, I don’t know, it was just for Fernand Lopez. But it was a little embarrassing, because you have your future opponent, you have your former sparring partner, and also Nassourdine Imamov. Nassourdine Imamov has done a lot of sparring with Francis Ngannou, it is perhaps the biggest sparring he has had in his career. So that’s why we were a little embarrassed. He had just won his fight at Madison Square Garden. That’s why it was a little shameful, that’s why it was a little wrong to do that in my opinion. It’s bad. For me it was wrong. That’s it, ”he explained.
The interview with Ciryl Gane in L’Arène Podcast