UFC 270 Set for ‘50/50’ Heavyweight Clash for the Ages
When the bookmakers can’t split two fighters in an MMA bout and price them at the same odds, you know you are in for an evenly matched contest that could easily turn into – to quote the legendary Jim Ross – a slobberknocker.
It’s particularly helpful when the duo in question have dynamite in their hands, and that is very much the case with Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane.
The two preeminent heavyweights in mixed martial arts will lock horns at UFC 270 on January 22, and this is a fantastic way for fight fans to start the year.
You can visit Space Casino and see for yourselves – the pair are both priced at -110, and that shows you exactly how tough those in the know believe this contest is to call.
Since relieving Stipe Miocic of his heavyweight gold back in March, Ngannou has been curiously quiet – the antithesis of a fighting champion. Circumstance has played a part in that hiatus, but after ten months out of the Octagon, coming back to fight an opponent as skilled as Gane is a risky business.
The UFC moved to crown an interim heavyweight champ, and that paired Gane against Derrick Lewis in a “winner takes all” contest. The result was a three-round demolition for the Frenchman, although he hardly gained the respect of Ngannou for his efforts. “I don’t recognize [Gane’s] belt,” the Cameroon brawler said. “I’m the undisputed heavyweight champion. [Gane’s belt] isn’t legitimate, it is a replacement.”
With all of the knowns and the unknowns, you can see why the sportsbooks are having a tough time picking the pair apart…
Everything to Gane
Styles make fights in any of the combat sports, and it’s very difficult to compare what has gone before with what might happen when the two artists find themselves toe to toe in the Octagon.
Some will point to the fact that it took Gane all five rounds to see off Jairzinho Rozenstruik in February – less than a year since Ngannou had KO’d the Surinam star in the opening round of their contest the previous May.
Others will question Ngannou’s inactivity, while looking to the fact that – in the meantime – Gane has bested the highly-rated Lewis and despatched the dangerous Alexander Volkov. He is very much on the up, while Ngannou’s hiatus cannot be conceived as a positive.
It’s notable too that Gane is unbeaten as a martial artist. He was 13-0 in Muay Thai and has won all ten of his MMA bouts – seven of those coming in the UFC.
It’s interesting that three of his last five victories have gone all the way to the judges’ scorecards, and while Gane has the technical edge on Ngannou he may be best served trying to get his foe out of there as quickly as possible – the champion has won his last five fights inside the distance.
It’s a fascinating fight and one in which a case can be made for both men… what a way to start 2022!
