The rivalry between Ciryl Gane and Francis Ngannou is one of the most heated in the history of the UFC. The heavyweight champions were once upon a time good friends and trained together at the same gym in Paris.
Ngannou was a part of the MMA Factory gym in Paris, France, and trained under the tutelage of Fernand Lopez along with Gane. However, following a dispute he had with the coach, he left the gym and joined his new gym, UFC Performance Institute Xtreme Couture.
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Recently, Ciryl Gane spoke with renowned MMA reporter Ariel Helwani and shared his thoughts on the snub his team had with Ngannou last year.
A video had gone viral on the internet last year. In the video, we could see Francis Ngannou run into his former teammates from MMA Factory and walk right past them without acknowledging their presence. The incident happened backstage at the iconic event of UFC 268 at the Madison Square Garden in New York.
According to Ciryl Gane, the snub was not planned or staged in any way. He explained to Helwani,” No, I didn’t know. I didn’t know he was gonna come like a guest in New York. I didn’t know that. And people like to say, yes, everything was managed for this meeting, and this is wrong.”
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He added,” I think it is wrong because there are no cameras, there was nobody. And we just did a lot of interviews for Nassourdine and we were just waiting for the elevator, and at the same time, he comes. At the same time. There was no camera. Francis hang out to the elevator and the guy picks up the phone and just do that. It was a phone, it was not a camera.”
What’s next for Ciryl Gane?
Ciryl Gane will take on his nemesis and former teammate, Francis Ngannou, at the upcoming event of UFC 270. The event will take place on the 22nd of January, 2022 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
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HOUSTON, TX – AUGUST 07: Ciryl Gane celebrates his victory over Derrick Lewis in their Interim Heavyweight (Title) bout during UFC 265 on August 07, 2021, at Toyota Center in Houston, TX. (Photo by Louis Grasse/PxImages/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The fight is highly anticipated and both the contestants will fight to unify the UFC heavyweight championship title. The fact that both the fighters have so much history, adds more excitement to the fight.
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Who do you think will walk away with the title at UFC 270? Let us know in the comments section below.
