Ciryl Gane has heard Alexander Volkov’s challenge loud and clear, and it sounds like the Frenchman may just be ready to oblige.
In the UFC Vegas 30 main event, heavyweights Ciryl Gane and Alexander Volkov will put one another to the test and determine which of the two will draw closer to a world title shot. Indeed, whenever two top-five heavyweights are paired together, the stakes match the size of the combatants, and this weekend’s fight between Gane and Volkov is no different.
In Volkov’s case, just winning isn’t enough. After taking home Performance of the Night in his most recent fight against Alistair Overeem with a TKO victory, Volkov expressed his desire to have another fan-friendly fight with Gane in a standup battle devoid of any takedowns. MMA News’s James Lynch sat down with Gane Thursday and asked if he had gotten wind of Volkov’s remarks.
“Yes, I think he want to do that,” Gane said with a smile. “He said something like, ‘I don’t know who has the best kung-fu.'”
After acknowledging Volkov’s remarks, Gane gave his own preview of what fans can expect, which sounded quite similar to what the Russian is looking for.
“It’s going to be a big war,” Gane predicted. “It’s going to be a big war because I think he’s gonna challenge me. He’s really gonna challenge me and push to make me a new version of myself. And I like that. That’s why I’m really excited about this fight.”
We’ll have to see if this “war” will include the deployment of any ground attacks from the Frenchman.
Gane isn’t buying into the narrative that Volkov is only a striker, though. Regardless of what the Russian says he is hoping for in Saturday’s heavyweight clash, Gane isn’t expecting a one-dimensional fighter in Volkov. Instead, he is prepared to take on an experienced veteran who will present arguably the biggest challenge of Gane’s young MMA career.
“I think it’s a really good matchup,” Gane said. “I think it’s a really good matchup because he’s, I think, one of the best in this division and his striking: high-level striking. He’s well-rounded. He can do anything, and he proved it. He challenged Werdum on the ground game. He challenged Curtis (Blaydes) with the wrestling game. So this guy is really well-rounded, and he’s taller than me, heavier than me, so this is a big test, and I’m really excited about that.”
You can check out our full interview with Ciryl Gane ahead of his UFC Vegas 30 main event with Alexander Volkov below:
