The long wait is over. Fans now know who will be fighting for the undisputed heavyweight title and when the fight will take place.
Dana White confirmed the matchup in a recent video, revealing that Tom Aspinall will defend his belt against Ciryl Gane in the main event of UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi.
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This move wasn’t entirely unexpected, especially after two other potential challengers were booked to fight each other on the same card.
That history should add some spice to what’s expected to be an interesting build-up ahead of October 25.
There was also another route available if the UFC had wanted to capitalise on recent momentum and take things in a different direction.
Joe Rogan says he would have picked Derrick Lewis over Ciryl Gane to fight Tom Aspinall
Ciryl Gane is a former interim champion and two-time title challenger, so it’s no surprise that he’s one of the biggest names in the heavyweight division.
Even so, some fans were caught off guard by his selection to face Tom Aspinall following a controversial win over Alexander Volkov in December – a victory Dana White didn’t think was deserved.
Speaking on The Joe Rogan Experience, with Khalil Rountree Jr. as his guest, Joe Rogan weighed in on the recent fight announcement.
If it had been up to him, he would have gone with someone else for the UFC 321 headliner.
Derrick Lewis has always had strong support from fans, something that was evident again after his recent win over Tallison Teixeira. That victory came with another memorable post-fight celebration and interview.
Lewis isn’t riding a big win streak or taking out top contenders at the moment, but ‘The Black Beast’ has never needed rankings to generate interest whenever he steps into the Octagon.
“If I was running things, I would’ve set up the Derrick Lewis fight with Aspinall,” Rogan said. “I might say forget Ciryl Gane for now. Derrick just had this big knockout win, who’s more popular than Derrick? Who’s more beloved by fans than Derrick? Set it up.”
Why Khalil Rountree thinks Ciryl Gane is the right opponent for Tom Aspinall
Derrick Lewis might have been a popular choice, but it always felt like Ciryl Gane was the direction the UFC wanted to go.
Given their history, contrasting styles, and profiles within the division, Gane versus Aspinall is arguably one of the biggest matchups the UFC could make right now.
Khalil Rountree spoke about this on the podcast, pointing out that ‘Bon Gamin’ holds a strong presence in France and brings significant market value to the promotion.
“From, I guess, a business standpoint, it makes sense to use Ciryl because of everything that he’s doing in France. Movie star, you know what I mean? He’s got the entire country behind him now so with the UFC expanding internationally, it’s like Aspinall’s a British icon. Ciryl’s a French icon.”
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