Ciryl Gane is a French mixed martial artist who took the UFC by storm with his impeccable skills and incredible athleticism right from the very start of his career. He joined the world’s biggest MMA promotion in 2019 and secured dominant victories in his first seven fights in the UFC.
The seventh fight was against Derrick Lewis, whom Gane defeated by a third-round TKO and became the interim heavyweight champion. His most recent fight was in March 2023 for the vacant heavyweight title against one of the greatest fighters of all time, Jon Jones. Gane lost by submission in the first round itself. But before he became a heavyweight contender and a fan favorite in the world of MMA, Gane had a childhood filled with unique experiences that would ultimately shape his path to the Octagon.
Ciryl Gane was born on April 12, 1990, in La Roche-sur-Yon, a town in western France. His father was a bus driver. Growing up, Gane displayed an early interest in sports but had to take up a job early on in his life, so he used to work in sales at a furniture store. Life was not very easy for the former champion but he fought through all the hardships to become one of the best in the world.
Gane’s success in the UFC comes as quite a surprise to many, as he started very late and still achieved so much in a sport that demands even decades of hard work.
Ciryl Gane’s career before the UFC
Ciryl Gane’s classmate advised him to start training when he was 24. As athletic and skilled as Gane is, it took him just two years to make his professional Muay Thai debut. In his first professional bout, he won the AFMT Muay Thai heavyweight title fight against Jérémy Jeanne. This was not it, as the French fighter earned multiple national titles in France and established himself as a rising star in the mixed martial arts world.
Gane started his MMA journey quite late in his life, as he made his debut in the sport in 2018 at the Canadian MMA promotion TKO. He fought three times in the Canadian promotion, and all of them were heavyweight title fights. Showcasing his excellence, Gane secured one-sided victories in all the fights and was then invited to join the biggest stage for MMA: the UFC.
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Gane has been a top contender in the heavyweight division of the UFC ever since he joined the promotion. He is set to face Serghei Spivac on Sept. 2 at UFC Paris and will look to make a comeback against the Moldavian fighter after losing to Jones in his last appearance inside the Octagon.
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