Dominick Cruz gave his detailed breakdown of the UFC 285 main event between Jon Jones and Ciryl Gane.
It’s almost time for one of the most highly-anticipated MMA moments of the year as ‘Bones’ makes his Octagon return after three years of inactivity. The former UFC light heavyweight champion is looking to secure the vacant heavyweight championship against Gane, a former interim heavyweight title holder. During an interview with Helen Yee, Cruz had this to say about ways ‘Bon Gamin’ could find success:
“His base style does bring what he has to do naturally, which is move his feet the whole time, lateral movements side-to-side, don’t go straight back in straight lines, and finish his combinations with kicks, and he does all these things naturally, Ciryl Gane…”
Cruz continued by saying:
“He’s very tricky and he’s so big and so lengthy. Anytime Jones has faced someone with that length, he’s taken some damage and had a tough time in the terms of Alexander Gustafsson… When you look at that, those little issues of the length and the damage they can create, Ciryl Gane brings naturally.”
Dominick Cruz questions Ciryl Gane’s ability to overcome the grappling skills of Jon Jones
Ciryl Gane’s only MMA loss came against Francis Ngannou in January 2022. ‘The Predator’ is usually a hard-hitting striker, but he surprised the MMA community by securing a win against Gane by wrestling. As a result, some people believe Jon Jones, a much better grappler than Ngannou, will be able to find success by taking down ‘Bon Gamin.’
During the same interview with Helen Yee, Dominick Cruz discussed Jones’ grappling advantage by saying:
“The problem is he just doesn’t have the grappling. There’s no way. Jon Jones is one of the best grapplers in the 205 division ten years ago, and he’s definitely the best grappler in the heavyweight division, so how do you get past Jon Jones being able to grapple a hold of you, double under hook you on the fence, take you down, elbow you, and either mount you and elbow you to death, or when you turn your back cause you don’t wanna be elbowed, you get choked. That’s how I see this going over a short period of time.”
Jones vs. Gane features several other major factors, including ‘Bones’ potentially having ring rust and joining a new division. With that said, the former light heavyweight champion is arguably the greatest fighter of all time. If he can emerge victorious against ‘Bon Gamin,’ the 35-year-old would further his legacy with another feather in his cap.
