An intriguing heavyweight title fight headlines UFC 270, the first pay-per-view event of 2022.
UFC 270, on Saturday night in Anaheim, Calif., features lineal champion Francis Ngannou of Cameroon as he defends his throne against interim titleholder and Frenchman Ciryl Gane.
Ngannou (16-3) boasts possibly the most fearsome one-punch power the UFC has ever seen. His four-fight run to a title shot all ended in knockouts, with the longest bout going one minute, 11 seconds. His coronation came at UFC 260 last March, when division GOAT Stipe Miocic made it into the second round before Ngannou slept him as well.
Francis Ngannou’s contract dispute a major story heading into UFC 270
Gane (10-0), meanwhile, has been on a frantic rise through the ranks. The former kickboxer has used his range to keep opponents off-balance and win seven straight fights since his 2019 UFC debut. Seven of those have come via finish. This includes his last Octagon appearance when he defeated top-three talent Derrick Lewis at UFC 265 in August.
Gane claimed a meaningless prop of an interim belt, which UFC president Dana White created because he was angry Ngannou didn’t want to fight Gane on White’s preferred date. But there’s no disputing Gane is the real deal.
Tensions between Ngannou and White have not settled down and have been an undercurrent leading up to the event. Ngannou has been vocal about being unhappy with his current pay rate as he heads into the final bout on his contract — if he loses. If he wins, he remains bound to the UFC through the “champion’s clause.” A clause that adds three fights or another year of time on the deal.
Brandon Moreno vs Deiveson Figueiredo 3 the first back-to-back-to-back trilogy in UFC history
The evening’s co-feature bout is also one not to miss, as the flyweight title is on the line in a trilogy fight. The first Mexican-born UFC champion, Brandon Moreno (19-5-2) of Tijuana, puts his belt on the line against the man from whom he took the gold, Brazil’s Deiveson Figueiredo.
The duo first met at UFC 256, where Figueiredo (20-2-1) retained the title in a thrilling majority draw. At UFC 263, Moreno claimed the belt via third-round submission.
This is both fighters’ first bout since that June matchup.
UFC 270 kicks off at 6 pm ET with the early prelims on UFC Fight Pass and ESPN+. The core preliminaries follow at 8 pm on ESPN 2 and ESPN+. Then comes the main card PPV at 10 pm ET, exclusively on ESPN+ for $74.99.
–Field Level Media
