Ciryl Gane admits he wasn’t himself when he fought Jon Jones last March for the vacant UFC heavyweight title.
The only time Gane (12-2 MMA, 9-2 UFC) has been finished in his pro career was against Jones (28-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC). Gane tapped from a guillotine choke just over two minutes into the fight.
“When I look back at it, it was obvious that I was not there,” Gane said in French on “UFC 310 Countdown.” “It represented exactly how I felt on the day of the fight. It was a total misunderstanding of what was happening.
“I don’t recognize myself there. It’s something I’ve never done in my life. I’ve never fought that way before. My distance management, my movement, the alertness that I love to show – I had none of that.”
It’s not a knock on one’s resume to lost to the consensus GOAT of the sport. Jones has hung losses on many great fighters over the years and has often made it look easy. But for Gane, he feels disappointed that he didn’t put forth his best effort in the biggest moment of his career.
Gane rebounded nicely in his next appearance six months later, where he stopped Serghei Spivac in the second round to get back on track.
The French heavyweight returns to action at UFC 310 to take on Alexander Volkov. Gane knows it’s another opportunity to prove he belongs in the title conversation. With the lessons learned from his fight against Jones, Gane believes he’s a renewed fighter focused on the goal of becoming champion.
“Looking back, I think that this experience may have been beneficial,” Gane said. “For me personally, it helped me to refocus on myself. It gave me a spirit of revenge, a competitive spirit.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.
