Top-five heavyweights Derrick Lewis and Ciryl Gane will go to war on pay-per-view for the UFC interim heavyweight title in the main of UFC 265 on Aug. 7, from inside the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.
Derrick Lewis vs Ciryl Gane: What you need to know
- Time: UFC 265 kicks of with the prelims at 6 pm ET on ESPN and streaming service ESPN+
- Cost: The main card PPV, which costs US $69.99, begins at 10 pm ET exclusively on ESPN+
- Odds: Gane is a sizable betting favorite at -365, to Lewis’ underdog line of +280 (via DraftKings)
- Tickets: You can purchase tickets for UFC 265 directly from the Toyota Center box office here.
Lewis vs Gane is also power vs precision
Both Lewis and Gane have certain advantages over the other when it comes to the striking department. Each is a talented striker, however, they have reached this championship opportunity in different ways. Lewis with his massive power and Gane with his proficient and varied striking abilities.
The first man to successfully apply those advantages in the fight could determine who leaves as the next opponent for current division champion Francis Ngannou.
- Lewis’ otherwordly power: “The Black Beast” has 20 knockouts in his 25 career wins (80% ratio). Twelve of those have come inside the Octagon, with the most recent being against talented wrestler Curtis Blaydes in February.
- Gane’s technical acumen: Before he was an MMA fighter, “Bon Gamin” was a champion Muay Thai practionier. He took those varied striking skills and used them to outpoint skilled strikers in Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Alexander Volkov over two five round main event bouts earlier this year.
Advantage: Gane
Will Octagon experience come into play?
One major advantage Lewis has over his French opponent is experience. In the UFC alone, he has more than double the fights Gane has had in his total MMA career. In addition, he has competed in a title fight before.
- The grizzled MMA veteran: Lewis has fought in the Octagon on 21 occassions. Competing against some of the best heavyweights of the last five years in Junior dos Santos, Francis Ngannou, and in a 2018 title bout against then-champion Daniel Cormier.
- The MMA neophyte: Although his run in the UFC has been most impressive, and more than half of his professional bouts have been in the Octagon, Gane having just nine fights in the sport is a notable difference between him and his opponent.
Advantage: Lewis
Will secondary gifts decide the fight?
Lewis and Gane have worked their way up the division ladder on the back of their gifts as strikers. However, each has shown other skills and abilities that, in the end, could sway the fight in their direction.
- The never-out-of-it power of Lewis: Lewis’ power has been lauded for years, however, what truly makes it special is it can happen at any time. Like it did in the last 10 seconds of the third round, in his 2018 knockout win over Volkov. The big man has a unique way of conserving enough energy later in bouts and then unleashing absolute momentum switching bombs. Although, he has only reached the fourth round twice in his career, and went 1-1 in those two bouts.
- Gane’s grappling and cardio: While he is recognized as proficient striker, Gane has shown talent as a grappler too. Having three submission wins, and two of those coming inside the Octagon. Furthermore, after scoring back-to-back decision wins in five round fights, Gane has also showed elite cardio for the division.
Advantage: Gane
The bottom line: Outside of Ngannou and former champion Stipe Miocic, these two are the next best heavyweights in the world. Sure, there is controversy surrounding an interim-title fight happening while the current champion is healthy, but both are deserving of a championship opportunity. The bout also clearly defines the title pecking order and delivers the new heavyweight king a very worthy challenger for his first title defense, hopefully, later this year.
