5 reasons why Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane represents the best of combat sports

UFC 270: Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane poster [Image Credit: @UFCEurope]

Francis Ngannou takes on Ciryl Gane in the main event of UFC 270, the UFC’s first pay-per-view of the new year. The event is set to go down at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, where a stacked fight card will be underway on January 22nd.

☝🏿 01.22.22 #undisputed https://t.co/SD8nttXWJO

All eyes will be on the main event. Ngannou, the heavyweight champion, and Gane, the interim heavyweight champion, will battle for undisputed gold in a highly anticipated title-unification bout.

This matchup isn’t just any old title fight. There are a number of factors and variables that will influence proceedings in the build-up, as well as inside the octagon.

We believe that the Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane bout embodies everything we love about combat sports – high stakes, an intriguing storyline and an unbelievable stylistic matchup.

Here are five reasons why this monumental fight represents the best of combat sports.

#5. Aspiring boxer vs. Muay Thai phenom: Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane's contrasting journeys

Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane have had hugely contrasting journeys leading up to their title-unification bout at UFC 270.

Ngannou was born in a small village in Batié, Cameroon. He didn’t have any formal education growing up and lived in poverty throughout his childhood. At the age of 10, he started working in a sand quarry in Batié in order to provide for his family.

Watch Francis Ngannou share his experience of working in a sand mine on The Joe Rogan Experience below:

Francis Ngannou was 22 when he began training in boxing. However, he was forced to stop training due to an illness and took on odd jobs to make ends meet. Four years later, at 26, he decided to head to Paris with the goal of becoming a professional boxer.

Following an arduous journey across the Sahara Desert, the Moroccan-Spanish border and the Mediterranean Sea, Ngannou was jailed in Spain for illegally crossing the border. He was released after two months in a detention facility and subsequently made his way to Paris.

He was homeless in the French capital for quite a while before being introduced to Fernand Lopez, the head coach at the MMA Factory in Paris.

Ngannou, who was a huge fan of Mike Tyson, was initially interested in taking up boxing. However, Lopez saw his potential and convinced him to try MMA instead. Lopez gave him some MMA gear and allowed him to train and sleep at the gym.

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Fernand Lopez guided Francis Ngannou’s career all the way until the Cameroonian’s title first title fight against Stipe Miocic at UFC 220, where he lost via unanimous decision.

After the bout, Ngannou left the MMA Factory and moved to Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas. Under his new head coach Eric Nicksick, he became the new heavyweight champion at UFC 260 following a KO victory over Miocic.

From the sand mines in Cameroon to being crowned the UFC Heavyweight Champion in the fight capital of the world! 🏆

@francis_ngannou's decade-long dream has come true! 👏

#UFC260 https://t.co/pcyoVio7rh

Ciryl Gane was born in France. His father was a bus driver and football player, who inspired his son to take part in sports throughout his childhood. As a youth, he began working at a furniture shop after joining a work-study program in Paris.

A former classmate introduced Gane to Muay Thai and he took to the sport effortlessly. He made his professional Muay Thai debut in 2014 and amassed a 13-0 record over the next four years, including 9 KO/TKO victories before transitioning to MMA under the tutelage of Fernand Lopez, the former coach of Francis Ngannou.

‘Bon Gamin’ put together a dominant 3-0 run in Canada’s premier MMA promotion, TKO Major League MMA, before signing with the UFC in 2019.

Watch his short run in MMA outside of the UFC below:

The undefeated Frenchman went on a six-fight win streak upon joining the UFC, including victories over Junior dos Santos, Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Alexander Volkov.

Gane’s phenomenal win streak earned him a shot at interim gold against Derrick Lewis at UFC 265 for the interim heavyweight belt. He won via third-round TKO to set up a title-unification bout with Francis Ngannou.

The Predator says Ciryl Gane "knows what is coming" 🥶 https://t.co/Z4v08Owv09