Tag: UFC 270

Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane title unification bout in the works for UFC 270 on Jan. 22

The UFC heavyweight title will be unified at the first pay-per-view of 2022.

The UFC heavyweight title is expected to be unified at the first pay-per-view event of 2022.

Reigning heavyweight champion [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] (16-3 MMA, 11-2 UFC) will meet interim champ [autotag]Ciryl Gane[/autotag] (10-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) on Jan. 22 at UFC 270, which doesn’t have a known venue or location at this time.

Two people with knowledge of the matchup confirmed to MMA Junkie that the booking is close to finalized but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. French media outlet La Sueur was first to report the news.

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Ngannou captured the heavyweight belt at UFC 260 in March, when he knocked out Stipe Miocic in the second round to avenge his 2018 title-fight loss. Boasting a 100 percent finish rate, Ngannou has knocked out his past five opponents in less than two rounds combined, notching four performance bonuses along the way.

In a battle of two of France’s greatest mixed martial artists, Ngannou will take on former MMA Factory Paris training partner Gane, who is unbeaten in his MMA career. With just three years of pro MMA experience under his belt, Gane skyrocketed up the UFC’s heavyweight rankings and captured the interim title with a third-round TKO of Derrick Lewis at UFC 265.

The latest lineup for UFC 270 includes:

  • Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane – to unify heavyweight title
  • Derek Brunson vs. Jared Cannonier
  • Greg Hardy vs. Aleksei Oleinik
  • AJ Dobson vs. Jacob Malkoun
  • Poliana Botelho vs. Ji Yeon Kim
  • Wellington Turman vs. Rodolfo Vieira

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Greg Hardy vs. Aleksei Oleinik added UFC’s January pay-per-view lineup

Greg Hardy will attempt to snap his losing skid in an important fight for his career against Aleksei Oleinik.

[autotag]Greg Hardy[/autotag] will attempt to snap his losing skid in an important fight for his career against [autotag]Aleksei Oleinik[/autotag].

After a rough 2021 campaign, Hardy (7-4 MMA, 4-4 UFC) can seek a better start to 2022 when he meets Oleinik (59-15-1 MMA, 8-6 UFC) in a heavyweight bout on the UFC’s Jan. 22 pay-per-view card – likely to be UFC 270.

MMA Junkie verified the matchup with multiple people close to the situation. The people requested anonymity because the UFC has yet to make an official announcement.

Hardy, a controversial former NFL standout, has suffered knockout losses against Tai Tuivasa and Marcin Tybura in his past two outings. The 33-year-old began his MMA career in June 2018, and will be at a massive experience disadvantage to Oleinik, who had his first documented contest in 1996.

Oleinik, 44, is in desparate need of a win as well. He’s currently on a three-fight losing skid dating back to his split decision win over Fabricio Werdum at UFC 249 in May 2020.

The latest UFC 270 lineup now includes:

  • Derek Brunson vs. Jared Cannonier
  • Greg Hardy vs. Aleksei Oleinik

Derek Brunson vs. Jared Cannonier booked for UFC 270 in January

A major middleweight fight is the first addition to the promotion’s January pay-per-view event.

The first pay-per-view event of 2022 has it’s first addition – and it’s a big fight for the middleweight division.

Top contenders [autotag]Derek Brunson[/autotag] and [autotag]Jared Cannonier[/autotag] will collide Jan. 22 at a yet-to-be-announced event expected to be UFC 270. No location or venue has been finalized at this time.

Two people with knowledge of the matchup confirmed the booking Monday to MMA Junkie but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

Brunson (23-7 MMA, 17-6 UFC) rides a five-fight winning streak into one of the biggest opportunities of his career. The recent stretch of success includes  victories over Elias Theodorou, Ian Heinisch, Edmen Shahbazyan, Kevin Holland, and most recently, Darren Till.

Cannonier (14-5 MMA, 7-5 UFC) enters the fight a winner of four of his most recent five outings. Outside of a loss to Robert Whittaker two fights ago, Cannonier has racked up wins over David Branch, Anderson Silva, Jack Hermansson, and most recently, Kevlin Gastelum.

While not official, UFC president Dana White has indicated the promotion is eying a middleweight title fight (potentially for January) between champion Israel Adesanya and former champion Robert Whittaker, though persistent COVID-19 travel issues could come into play.

No other fights have been announced for UFC 270 at this time.

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