Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane: UFC 270 Betting Preview
The main event features the reigning UFC Heavyweight Champion, Francis Ngannou, taking on Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion Ciryl Gane in what appears to be Ngannou's final fight for the organization regardless of the outcome.
HW - (C) Francis Ngannou (16-3-0) vs. HW - (IC) Ciryl Gane (10-0-0)
Date: Saturday, January 22, 2022
Time: 10:00 PM ET
Venue: Honda Center, Anaheim, California
Broadcast Coverage: PPV
Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane Moneyline and Odds
Odds to Win: Ngannou (+122) / Gane (-150)
How Will Fight End: KO/TKO (-200), Submission (+650), Points (+210)
Will the fight go the distance? Yes (+240) No (-340)
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Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane News, Analysis, and Picks
Ngannou's relationship with the UFC is strained to say the least. The last nail in the coffin seemed to be Gane's interim title shot. Ngannou turned down a fight against Derrick Lewis in Lewis's hometown, leading to Gane taking on Lewis instead. What is of note in that situation is that Ngannou was busy doing humanitarian work and could not take a fight at that time.
Ngannou and Gane both measure six-foot-four and weigh around 250 lbs. Ngannou has a two-inch reach advantage and a 2.5-inch leg-reach advantage. Ngannou is on a five-fight win streak, which all ended in knockouts. Both fighters have KO wins over former champion Junior dos Santos and share Lewis as another opponent in common. Gane dominated Lewis and finished him in the third round, while Ngannou lost via decision. Gane has been the more active fighter in the past few years, fighting three times in 2021, compared to Ngannou's one.
An interesting wrinkle in this one is that the two fighters were training partners in Paris. The footage that leaked of the pair shows Gane landing more often. However, Ngannou's strongest asset is his power, which would not factor into a sparring season. Gane is the more measured striker of the two. He'll want to keep his distance against Ngannou or seek to control him on the ground. Gane has three submissions on his record, two of which were in the UFC.
Ngannou may not be technically perfect, but whatever he hits goes to sleep. His knockout rate is a whopping 75 percent, and his average fight time is five minutes and 38 seconds. Gane has shown that he can handle big punchers like Lewis, but Ngannou might hit harder than anyone that has ever stepped in the cage.
Gane is favored in this fight, and he has the skills to win. However, he'll have to be perfect to beat Ngannou because he'll end up unconscious if he makes one mistake.
Heavyweight reigns usually don't last very long, and this fight is probably going to come down to whether or not Ngannou can land a clean shot or not.
We're leaning towards Gane in this fight because he's shown poise in his previous bouts against power punchers, and he's the more well-rounded of the two competitors.
The Bets: Ciryl Gane by Points (+300), How Will the Fight End: Points (+210), Will the fight go the distance? Yes (+240)
All UFC predictions and picks are courtesy of SportsGrid
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