MMA Preview – Ciryl Gane vs Tai Tuivasa at UFC Fight Night 209
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CIRYL GANE VS TAI TUIVASA FACTS
When is UFC Paris? Saturday 3rd September, 2022 - 18:00 start (UK)
Where is UFC Paris? Accor Arena, Paris (France)
Where can I get tickets for UFC Paris? Click here to buy tickets for UFC Paris
What channel is UFC Paris on? BT Sport 3
Where can I stream UFC Paris? BT Sport subscribers can stream the fight online via the BT Sport website
For viewers in the United States, the event will be shown live on ESPN+ and you can sign up for access as part of a Disney Bundle here!
CIRYL GANE VS TAI TUIVASA LOWDOWN
Ciryl Gane (10-1) has to be at least partially responsible for France finally legalizing MMA. The sport got the green light a couple years ago and the UFC arrive to the country for the very first time. Gane is the perfect headliner for the occasion as he oozes as much class outside the octagon than in it. He stormed his way to a title shot after just seven UFC fights disposing four top contenders. However, he ran into Francis Ngannou at UFC 270 who could have beaten any human in the world that night. We all know about his terrifying knockout power which many believe Gane had the finesse to swerve, but the champ displayed some surprising wrestling to grind out a unanimous decision.
He welcomes Tai Tuivasa (14-3) to Paris who is in the form of his life right now. After suffering three losses in a row, he went back to the drawing board getting some different looks at AKA to sharpen up his game and it has paid dividends. He is currently on a five-fight knockout streak. He has swatted away Stefan Struve (2020), Harry Hunsucker (2021), Greg Hardy (2021), Augusto Sakai (2021) and most impressively, Derrick Lewis back in February.
CIRYL GANE VS TAI TUIVASA PREDICTION
Tuivasa is a knockout artist and we all know how he is going to try and end this one. Gane has already shared the cage with Junior dos Santos, Jairzinho Rozenstruik, Derrick Lewis and Francis Ngannou – some of the very best and most dangerous strikers to grace the division and he has not been rocked once.
Tuivasa is not going to wrestle like Ngannou did, so he needs a strategy to find the chin. He does not possess the technicality of the lumps mentioned but he does have more speed which will be key. He needs to pace himself and time his explosions of power at the right time or hope Gane makes a mistake.
The Frenchman has many more strings to his bow and has crucial five-round experience. He will try and weather the storm for the first couple rounds and rely on his impeccable defence, movement, speed and technique to wear Tuivasa with a full arsenal of strikes.
His volume and leg kicks will dismantle the Aussie and he also has the grappling to sap the gas tank. Expect some clinch work with thunderous knees and elbows. If he can get Tuivasa on his back in the later rounds when he is fatigued, a submission will open up.
Tuivasa will be incredibly dangerous in the first two rounds and will look to negate the six-inch reach disadvantage by exploding into range. We expect Gane weave his way out of danger and if this goes into the championship rounds, Gane can win this in a variety of ways.
Prediction: Gane via KO/TKO - CLICK HERE FOR PARIMATCH'S WELCOME OFFER (BET £5, GET £30 IN BONUSES!)
Value Bet: Gane via Submission
