CIRYL GANE has issued a defiant message to his critics ahead of his do-or-die title fight with Tom Aspinall.
The Frenchman will bid to end Aspinall’s brief reign as undisputed heavyweight champion on Saturday night in the main event of UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi, which will be aired LIVE on TNT Sports Box Office.
Gane, 35, will look to win undisputed UFC gold at the third time, having previously had his dreams crushed by former team-mate Francis Ngannou and MMA icon Jon Jones.
Ngannou and Jones both exploited glaring holes in Gane’s grappling in their respective wins, and many expect the versatile Aspinall will do the same this weekend.
But ‘Bon Gamin’ insists he’s learned his lessons from the crushing losses and that he won’t be outwrestled this time around.
He said: “Sometimes life is a little bit strange because some bad results and then people think that you’ve never worked on your ground game, on your grappling.
ASP AND AWE
Aspinall brutalises pads in UFC 321 workout ahead of crunch clash with Gane
“But believe me, as someone who’s come from Thai boxing as well, I’ve got a team behind me.
“My coach Fernand Lopez, we’ve worked on our ground game.
“These are experts. We know exactly what we’re doing. Sometimes I’ve not been able to show it and that’s on me.
“But this time, believe me, I’ve been working, and hopefully I can show it this time around.”
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UFC 321: Aspinall vs Gane – all the info
TOM ASPINALL is BACK!
MMA’s most dangerous heavyweight returns to the ring after almost 18 months of waiting for a blockbuster fight with Jon Jones.
Brit superstar Aspinall, 32, has not been in the ring since his round one demolition of Curtis Blaydes in July 2024.
He has since been made the UFC heavyweight champion and defends his title for the first time against Ciryl Gane THIS WEEKEND.
The dangerous Frenchman is coming off good wins over Serghei Spivac and Alexander Volkov and will hope Aspinall’s ring rust counts against him.
UFC 321, which will be held in Abu Dhabi, will also feature a strawweight title fight between Virna Jandiroba and Mackenzie Dern, as well as the return of Khabib Nurmagomedov’s cousin Umar.
Brit star Nathaniel Wood is in action against Jose Delgado.
Here’s everything you need to know about the big fight…
INFO
- Date and time for massive heavyweight clash
- Who is on the UFC 321 undercard?
- How to watch huge fight
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Aspinall’s clash with Gane will be his first outing since being elevated from interim to undisputed champion following Jones’ short-lived retirement.
And he admits he’s under the most pressure he’s ever been ahead his long-overdue dust-up with the Parisian.
He said: “I think it’s my toughest fight so far. This is the most pressure on me now than there’s ever been before. It’s MMA.
“Heavyweight MMA. Anybody can lose but I know what I can do and I believe what I can do.
“It’s hard to say out loud without sounding arrogant but I think I’m a generational talent.
“That’s something that sets me aside from the rest.
“I’ve dedicated my absolute life to it. Skill for skill, I’m better than anybody else.”
Watch UFC 321: Aspinall v Gane exclusively live on TNT Sports Box Office from 7pm on Saturday, 25th October.
