5 most explosive moments from UFC 265: Derrick Lewis vs. Ciryl Gane

#4 Vicente Luque snatches victory from the jaws of defeat

Vicente Luque stunned Michael Chiesa at UFC 265 by catching him in his patented D'Arce choke

The welterweight tilt between contenders Vicente Luque and Michael Chiesa was arguably UFC 265’s second-most anticipated bout, and it didn’t fail to live up to expectations. Despite lasting just over three minutes, this was an awesome fight.

Even more awesome was the way that Luque managed to pull out a win. After being taken down by Chiesa in the early going, ‘The Silent Assassin’ appeared to be in a lot of trouble.

‘Maverick’ took his back, and while Luque defended the position well, it seemed like only a matter of time before he would be tapping out. Within moments, the Brazilian was forced to defend a variety of chokes.

But when Chiesa switched to an armbar attempt, Luque slipped free – and then turned the tide by suddenly latching onto his favourite submission, the D’Arce. Chiesa immediately tried to pull free, but it was too late.

‘The Silent Assassin’ flipped onto his back, tightened up the choke, and with Chiesa’s face turning purple, he was forced to submit – giving Luque his fourth win in a row in the process.

OH MY GOSH!!! 😱 @VicenteLuqueMMA just reversed it on him! #UFC265 pic.twitter.com/JTBj7W3j47

— UFC (@ufc) August 8, 2021

Luque is almost certainly a high-level UFC welterweight title contender now, but the most impressive thing about this win was the sudden way in which he latched onto the D’Arce. It was an example of how submissions, when they’re done well, can be just as explosive as a knockout.

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#3 Ciryl Gane wins UFC gold with his violent stoppage of Derrick Lewis

Ciryl Gane stopped Derrick Lewis in violent fashion to claim the interim UFC heavyweight title

Ciryl Gane was undoubtedly UFC 265’s biggest winner, as he claimed the interim UFC heavyweight title by stopping Derrick Lewis in the third round.

However, ‘Bon Gamin’ didn’t pick up one of the two most explosive finishes of the night, despite finishing Lewis off with some extreme violence.

Still, nobody could complain about the way that the main event finished. Lewis looked outclassed from the off in this fight, barely able to land a strike on Gane, who once again showed plenty of patience and a masterful grasp of range inside the octagon.

The end came once Gane had ‘The Black Beast’ hurt with leg kicks in the third round. Lewis already looked tired at that point, and simply couldn’t mask the pain any more. He stumbled backwards into the fence, allowing Gane to open up with a flurry, looking for a finish.

The crowd seemed to believe that Lewis could still win – and he did try, winging a couple of haymakers at his French opponent. They didn’t land, though, and Gane continued to pour it on, eventually forcing Lewis to collapse to his knees.

Moments later, the fight was over.

FRANCE STAND UP 🇫🇷🇫🇷🇫🇷 @Ciryl_Gane #AndNew #UFC265 pic.twitter.com/HCW0mgnpEp

— UFC (@ufc) August 8, 2021

This wasn’t a classic one-punch knockout from Gane by any means, but it was an explosive finish and arguably stands as the most impressive way any fighter has dealt with Derrick Lewis inside the UFC octagon.