WASHINGTON — For the second time in his career, France’s Ciryl Gane has won the UFC’s interim heavyweight championship — but this one seems more meaningful than the first one in 2021.
Gane (14-2) stopped Alex Pereira (13-4) via TKO at 1:27 of the second round in the co-main event of UFC Freedom 250 on Sunday. The finish came after Gane dropped the former middleweight and light heavyweight champion with a jab in the center of the Octagon and followed up with a long series of unanswered elbows and punching combinations. Pereira managed to wrestle back to his feet, only to have the fight stopped as he fell backward along the fence.
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It was a massive statement by Gane, who is the only heavyweight to have fought all of the top names in Francis Ngannou, Jon Jones, Tom Aspinall and now Pereira. He was 0-2 with one no contest against the other three, prior to Sunday.
“I am really proud of myself and really proud of my team,” Gane mentioned. “Thank you everybody, thank you my family. We knew it was possible to do. We knew that.”
Pereira, of Brazil, was attempting to become the first fighter in UFC history to win belts in three different weight classes. Sunday marked his first appearance at heavyweight, for which he weighed in at 151 pounds. He vacated his 205-pound title in February for the opportunity to move up. Following the loss, he did not say whether he would continue on at heavyweight or return to light heavyweight.
“This was the risk,” Pereira mentioned through a interpreter. “If I hadn’t taken a risk every time I fought, I wouldn’t be where I am today. I don’t know [what’s next]. We’re going to sit down and look at it, the same way I lost at middleweight [in April 2023], I sat down with my team and figured it out. That’s exactly what I’ll do.”
Gane showed poise and skill from the opening bell, repeatedly scoring kicks to Pereira’s inner thigh and body. Pereira landed a significant right hand in the closing seconds of the first round, but it was otherwise a strong opening statement by Gane. He seized full control early in the second frame with the jab and refused to let Pereira off the hook once he had him hurt.
The undisputed title still belongs to English champion Tom Aspinall. Aspinall and Gane fought for the undisputed belt in October in Abu Dhabi. The fight resulted in a no-contest near the end of the first round, when Aspinall was unable to continue after suffering injury during an accidental eye poke by Gane. Aspinall has still not been cleared for contact from those injuries and underwent eye surgery earlier this year. His new advisor, boxing promoter Eddie Hearn, has also stated he doesn’t want Aspinall to fight again under the current terms of his contract. Gane declined to speculate on the situation immediately after the bout.
“We will see,” Gane mentioned. “Now, I just want to say thank you. Thank you, Dana. Thank you, [Pereira] and his team. Let’s do [my next fight] in Paris in September.”
