UFC Freedom : Ciryl Gane crushes Alex Pereira and takes the interim heavyweight belt at the White House
Ciryl Gane produced one of the biggest nights of French MMA. On Saturday in Washington, against the surreal backdrop of the White House, the man from the Vendee beat Alex Pereira by second-round TKO to claim the interim UFC heavyweight title. Against one of the hardest punchers in the sport’s history, and a fighter who could have become champion in a third weight class, Gane delivered a cold, controlled display that left the crowd stunned.
The first round was cautious, a feeling-out job. Pereira came forward behind kicks, trying to pile on his usual pressure. But Gane never let him settle. Light on his feet and full of intent, the Frenchman quickly found his range with low kicks and body shots, sticking to the plan with real clarity: move, answer on the back foot, and stop Pereira from planting his feet and unloading that brutal power. He even dipped for a takedown feint just to remind everyone he had options everywhere. He clearly took the opening round.
on MathODDS
A brutal second round as Gane makes history at the White House
The second round flipped everything. Gane found the opening with a vicious jab that put Pereira in serious trouble. Where plenty of others might have rushed in and blown it, the Frenchman kept his nerve, piling on the shots and never giving the Brazilian a chance to recover. Pereira tried to hang on, but the referee stepped in to stop it. The image said plenty: one of the UFC’s great punchers overwhelmed by the output and precision of a Gane many had seen mainly as a movement and distance man.
This win changes everything for the man from the Vendee. It wipes away the frustrating no contest against Tom Aspinall, cut short by an eye poke with no finish, and puts him right back at the top of the heavyweight picture. With the interim belt in hand, the road now opens to a rematch with champion Aspinall. But for now, one moment stands above the rest: Ciryl Gane at the White House, finishing Alex Pereira on a night many thought would belong to the Brazilian. It was the Frenchman who wrote the headline.
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