Ciryl Gane admits he was "afraid" to fight in front of home crowd after disappointing loss to Jon Jones

Ciryl Gane bounced back from his UFC 285 loss to Jon Jones with a second-round TKO victory against Sergei Spivak in the main event of UFC Paris. 'Bon Gamin' admitted that he was afraid going into the bout.

Speaking at the post-fight press conference, the No.2-ranked heavyweight stated:

"I'm not this kind of guy, I'm not really stressing, but I got the pressure. I'm not going to lie. I got the pressure. I wanted to do well."

Gane continued:

"This is not a game of basketball or soccer. That's different, and just that, you have some emotions really different so yeah, a little bit afraid, a little bit pressure, but excited and want to do well, but less than last year's because last year's was the first event in Paris and we didn't know exactly what we expected, but tonight I know the people in the crowd will be crazy and I did very well."

Check out Ciryl Gane's comments below:

Following UFC 285, Ciryl Gane faced plenty of criticism and backlash amidst reports that he doesn't train unless he is in a training camp. After bouncing back at UFC Paris, 'Bon Gamin' shared that he is looking to work toward a third opportunity to become the undisputed heavyweight champion.

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Jon Jones reveals reaction to facing Ciryl Gane instead of Francis Ngannou

Jon Jones was inactive for three years ahead of his heavyweight debut at UFC 285. While 'Bones' was initially targeting a return bout against Francis Ngannou, 'The Predator' left the UFC, opening the door for Ciryl Gane to receive a title opportunity.

The heavyweight champion recently appeared on the OverDogs Podcast, where he discussed the change of opponent, as well as the narrative around his return, stating:

"The narrative switched somehow and everyone is saying that I waited three years and I came back exactly when Francis was gone. That's actually not true. When I got back, Francis was very much on the roster still and I could have been his last fight, but instead he opted out and Ciryl Gane took Francis' spot. I came back ready for Francis Ngannou, for sure. I'm not going to lie though, knowing that I was fighting Ciryl Gane instead of Francis was kind of nice."

Check out Jon Jones' comments on the change of opponent below (22:35):

Jones needed just over two minutes to defeat Gane and capture the heavyweight title. He will defend the belt against Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 and has shared that he plans to retire after the bout.