UFC 270 Preview

Ladies and gentleman, we are in for another epic night on January 22. UFC 270 will be taking place in Anaheim, at the Honda Center. The fight card is pretty solid, but the two title fights is what everyone is looking forward to. The main card features two title fights, as Francis "The Predator" Ngannou (16-3) defends his Heavyweight Championship in unification bout against Interim Champ Ciryl Gane (10-0) and Brandon Moreno (19-5) defends his Flyweight Championship for the first time in a rematch against Deiveson Figueiredo (20-2). Before we witness these two iconic fights on January 22, I wanted to share my thoughts and predictions on each fight.

Francis Ngannou vs Ciryl Gane

The Undisputed "Baddest Man on the Planet" will be determined on January 22 at the Honda Center when Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane fight in the Octagon for the first time. This fight has all the ingredients to be one of the best fights of the year, based on the fact that they're currently the two best Heavyweights in the world and there's a storyline attached to this fight as well. The narrative built around thisfight is that the two competitors are friends turned foes. Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane go way back, being that both fighters has history with one another. Both men were each other's training partners back when Francis used to train at MMA Factory back in Paris, before he potentially made the decision to part ways and transfer over to Xtreme Couture in Vegas. When the fight was announced, fans were wondering how the build up to the fight would be, considering both fighters were former training partners. I personally thought both men were going to keep it respectful until the fight happened, but as we all know, the viral video of Francis Ngannou walking past Ciryl Gane and his old coaches at UFC 268 surfaced acrossed the internet. Francis was seen walking towards Ciryl Gane and his team, but instead of acknowledging them, he just kept on walking. Gane felt that the lack of acknowledgment by Ngannou was unnecessary and should have at least acknowledged Nassourdine Imamov, who was a former training partner of Ngannou as well. From Ngannou's perspective, he felt that it was best not to say anything, due to the rift between himself and his old coach. Nonetheless, all that really matters is whe they finally step foot in the octagon. Francis Ngannou is arguably the most terrifying force of nature to ever step foot in the octagon and has one of the most terrifying highlight reels to go along with it. Make no mistake about it, Ngannou is coming in there to knock Gane's head off of his shoulders. On the other hand, Ciryl Gane is elite in his own right. He's currently undefeated and is a puzzle that no one has been able to solve thus far. Gane is very light on his toes. He has great movement and moves as if he's a welterweight. Gane has a very good chance to win this fight. This fight all comes down to which fighter is able to implement their gameplan. Will Ngannou be able to impose his will and knock him out within the first two rounds? Will Gane be able to bounce in and out of the pocket and test the cardio of Ngannou? We shall see come January 22! Expect this fight to be fireworks, we are all in for an epic night!

Prediction: Francis Ngannou via 3rd Round Knockout

Brandon Moreno vs Deiveson Figueiredo

Brandon Moreno and Deiveson Figueiredo will be fighting for a 3rd time at UFC 270 in a trilogy. Brandon Moreno will be defending the Flyweight Championship against the man he took it from a few months back at UFC 263. These two competitors know each other very well, as this is the 3rd straight training camp they've had for one another. In the first fight between the two, both men battled to a draw in a fight of the year candidate at UFC 256. Figueiredo would have won that fight, if not for the illegal blow that caused him to lose a point on the judges scorecards. Due to the first fight being a majority draw, Moreno was granted an automatic rematch at UFC 263. Moreno left no doubt as to who was the better fighter, when he dominated Figueiredo for 3 rounds before submitting him by rear-naked choke. Figueiredo immediately campaigned for a rematch, but it's not often the UFC will grant a rematch after a fighter just got dominated. The UFC decided to go in another direction by booking Alexandre Pantoja instead of Figueiredo, but Pantoja couldn't agree to fight on the date that the UFC wanted. Due to that situation, the UFC decided to book the trilogy. This fight is going to be amazing and action-packed, just like the first two. I expect Figueiredo to bring his best on fight night, but I'm not sure if that will be enough to beat Moreno. Moreno is an excellent fighter with all of the confidence in the world. Will Moreno be able to dominate Figueiredo once again and close the chapter to this trilogy once and for all? Will Figueiedo force a fourth fight between the two? All questions will be answered on January 22! We are in for an epic night of fights!

Prediction: Brandon Moreno via Decision