Chael Sonnen thinks Ciryl Gane needs to prioritize urgency in the UFC 285 main event.
On March 4, Jon Jones will make his heavyweight debut against Gane with the vacant title on the line. It’s been three years since ‘Bones’ last fought, but the former light heavyweight champion is confident that his body is ready for the heavyweight division. Meanwhile, ‘Bon Gamin’ is determined to secure the vacant strap after previously holding the interim championship.
While most analysts are breaking down the stylistic matchup, Sonnen is focused on other factors. During a video on his YouTube channel, the former UFC fighter had this to say about Jones vs. Gane:
“One of the great skills of Jon Jones is his ability to know when it’s time to win. Urgency. I have not seen that from Ciryl Gane in a number of his fights, and I’ve seen Ciryl look good at times… There’s been times within Ciryl’s career where it’s been very close and all he needs to do is put his foot on the gas and he hasn’t been able to do that. He lacks that urgency.”
Gane is coming off a statement victory against Tai Tuivasa in September 2020. Before defeating Tuivasa, ‘Bon Gamin’ lost his opportunity of becoming the undisputed heavyweight champion when he was outwrestled by Francis Ngannou. He plans to silence the doubters by taking out Jones, but the latter’s only loss came in 2009, which was a disqualification for illegal downward elbows in a dominant performance.
11 years ago today, Jon Jones was disqualified against Matt Hamill and suffered the only loss of his career#UFC
https://t.co/F1XMKZuz84— JReal (@BloodyCanvasJon) December 5, 2020
Watch Chael Sonnen discuss Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane below:
Chael Sonnen believes Ciryl Gane needs to take control of the fight against Jon Jones
Chael Sonnen was trying to make a bigger point in his video. The 45-year-old thinks people must stop worrying about Jones’ wrestling and Gane’s striking. Instead, the UFC 285 main event breakdowns should revolve around who can strike first and control the pace of the fight. He had this to say:
“This is gonna be a fun match. Ciryl must, absolutely must, take control of this match in the opening frame. The first person to touch the other person is going to win this fight… If Jon Jones goes first, he will put you on the defense, no matter who you are, and you will defend for the duration of that fight. If you go out and put him on the defense, you take control of the dance.”
Sonnen continued by saying:
“Everybody has always stood around and waited on Jon. Whenever there’s an urgency, Jon feels it. Whenever there’s a time to get tough and hang on to a championship, Jon always wants it a little bit more than his opponent. I don’t think this is about striker vs. grappler, I really don’t.”
Sonnen also discussed how most analysts believe Gane could struggle with Jones’ wrestling, considering a non-wrestler like Ngannou found success that way. The former UFC fighter pointed out how ‘Bones’ was grappling less and less before moving up to heavyweight. It’ll be intriguing to see if the former light heavyweight champion utilizes his grappling against ‘Bon Gamin’ or tries to outstrike the athletic and powerful Frenchmen.
