This will be the second time the promotion travels to the capital of France. The Octagon came to Paris for the first-time last year almost to the day. The first ever event in Paris was a truly special as local athlete Cyril Gane enthralled the crowd with a third-round knockout victory over Tai Tuivasa. The event featured numerous iconic moments that French MMA fans will never forget.
The Main Event clash between the heavyweight division’s two resolute fighters Cyril Gane and Serghei Spivak headlines UFC Fight Night in Paris, which will be held in the Accor Arena. The two highly-rated superstars have been in the heavyweight division for years but will clash heads in the Octagon for the first time, making it a bout for the ages.
Cyril Gane, has displayed great striking ability, unlike any heavyweight the UFC has ever seen in his tenure, which is complemented brilliantly by his speed and technicality. Nicknamed “Bon Gamin”, the French athlete will be looking to rebound from his loss to Jon Jones in March earlier this year. While Gane has yet to taste success in two efforts at the undisputed heavyweight title, his name has been at the top of the list of contenders for more than two years, and with good cause.
Currently the number two ranked fighter in the heavyweight division, Gane will be looking to capitalise on the relentless home support as a stiff challenge awaits him on the weekend. On the other hand, Serghei Spavik, currently ranked seventh in the heavyweight division comes into this clash with three consecutive victories all by finishes. The 28-year-old Moldovan nicknamed the “Polar Bear”, is fast becoming a rising contender despite the lone loss to Tom Aspinall that is wedged on either side of three victories for the young athlete. A win against Gane in Paris will ensure Spavik’s credentials as a top contender for the UFC heavyweight title.
The bout between two of the most powerful women athletes in the UFC in Manon Fiorot and Rose Namajunas is set to be scintillating affair. Manon “The Beast” Fiorot will take on the challenge of Rose “The Thug” Namajunas in the Co-Main Card fight at the weekend in the women’s flyweight division. “The Beast” who is currently ranked tenth in the women’s pound for pound division, will welcome former strawweight champion Rose Namajunas to the flyweight class. Fiorot, who has never fought in her native France, enters the Octagon on the back of ten consecutive victories.
She last fought on October 22 last year at UFC 280, when she won a three-round unanimous decision over Katlyn Chookagian. On the other hand, UFC Fight Night in Paris will mark the return of Rose Namajunas to the UFC with her moving up a weight class to the women’s flyweight division. The two-time strawweight champion, Namajunas is currently ranked fourth in the women’s pound-for-pound division. Although “The Thug” hasn’t fought since May 7, 2022, when she lost the strawweight title to Carla Esparza in a unanimous decision at UFC 274, she will be looking to stamp her authority on the flyweight division with victory against Manon.
Lastly, a highly anticipated bout awaits in the men’s lightweight division as two submissions specialists, Benoit Saint-Denis and Thiago Moises will go head-to-head in the Fight Night in Paris. Saint-Denis is on a three-fight win streak coming into the event this weekend. Meanwhile, Thiago Moises who rose to fame through ‘Dana White’s Contender Series’ in Brazil back in 2018, comes to Paris on the back of a second-round submission win over his compatriot Melquizael Costa in UFC 283 earlier this year.
–IANS
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