UFC Predictions: UFC 270: Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane

This weekend sees a huge pay-per-view event go down from Anaheim, California, in the form of UFC 270: Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane.

UFC 270 features a huge heavyweight title bout in its main event, while the co-featured bout will see a trilogy clash between the promotion’s two best flyweights.

This one is basically a must-watch show for any MMA fan and could well turn out to be one of the best of 2022 when all is said and done.

Here are the predicted outcomes for UFC 270: Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane.

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#1. UFC heavyweight title: Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane

Francis Ngannou hits harder than any man in the heavyweight division

To say that this is a huge fight in the UFC heavyweight division would be an understatement. Not only is it the division’s first champion vs. champion bout since 2015’s clash between Cain Velasquez and Fabricio Werdum, there’s also genuine intrigue over who will win.

Add in the fact that Francis Ngannou’s contract is technically up after the fight, bringing into question his future with the UFC, and there’s an insane amount at stake here.

Even ignoring titles and contracts, this would be hugely fascinating bout. Ngannou and Ciryl Gane are former training partners. They sparred on numerous occasions before Ngannou’s departure from Paris’ MMA Factory a few years ago.

However, despite originating from the same camp, it’s safe to say that they have very different ways of approaching their fights inside the octagon.

From a technical perspective, Ngannou isn’t a great striker by any means. He holds his chin too high in the air, swings too widely and doesn’t really tend to set up his big shots. However, he has simply unparalleled power, even in the heavyweight division. If he lands, even with a glancing blow, his opponents tend to be knocked silly.

‘The Predator’ can count some of the greatest big men in UFC history amongst his victims. They include Cain Velasquez, Junior dos Santos, Alistair Overeem and Stipe Miocic, who he knocked out to claim the title last year.

Prior to that win, his big weakness was always suspected to be his wrestling, which Miocic exposed back in 2018. However, the fact he easily shrugged off Miocic’s takedowns in their rematch suggests he’s worked to close that gap.

This fight, however, probably won’t see him needing to defend too many takedowns. Gane is primarily a striker in his own right despite winning two bouts in the octagon via submission.

Unlike Ngannou, ‘Bon Gamin’ is not just a simple power puncher. The native of France is far more technical than his opponent, preferring to use strikes from the outside to break his foes down.

Sure, he hits tremendously hard in his own right, just ask Lewis or dos Santos, both of whom he knocked out. However, he’s also not afraid to turn a bout into a point-fighting contest, as he did against Jairzinho Rozenstruik, for instance.

Basically, then, this should come down to whether Ngannou can catch Gane with something big early in the fight. If he can’t do that, then Gane may well be able to stay on the outside, dictate the pace of the fight and take him into deep waters to pick him apart.

It’s nearly an impossible fight to pick, but given Ngannou’s potential distractions, there’s a chance that he doesn’t land the haymaker he’ll need to win. So the pick is Gane via decision.

The Pick: Gane via unanimous decision

#2. UFC flyweight title: Brandon Moreno vs. Deiveson Figueiredo

Who will come out on top in the third meeting between Brandon Moreno and Deiveson Figueiredo?

When the UFC booked a relatively late-notice flyweight title bout between then-champ Deiveson Figueiredo and challenger Brandon Moreno in late 2020, it felt like a routine title defense for the Brazilian.

After all, he’d beaten Joseph Benavidez twice and then dealt with Alex Perez in a matter of seconds. However, Moreno proved to be a much trickier opponent. ‘Deus Da Guerra’ couldn’t put him away and the Mexican ended up eking out a draw, albeit largely based on the fact that Figueiredo had a point deducted.

When the two men rematched last year at UFC 263, though, to everyone’s surprise, Moreno completely outfought the Brazilian. He outstruck and dropped him before choking him out in the third round to claim the title.

They’re now set to meet for a third time, so the big question is whether Moreno’s win was a fluke. Can he recapture the magic and pull off another victory at UFC 270, or did he catch Figueiredo, who reportedly had a bad weight cut, on a terrible day?

It’s hard to say. On one hand, Moreno proved that he can take the best that Figueiredo has to offer during their first bout. On the other hand, though, that first fight also proved that the Brazilian is perhaps the more skilled man if he’s on form.

Figueiredo hits remarkably hard for a flyweight, has tremendous finishing skills in literally all areas and is about as explosive an athlete as you’ll find in any weight division.

In terms of weaknesses, his loss to Moreno was really the first time we’d seen him in genuine trouble in the UFC. If it was really caused by a bad weight cut, then he could well come in looking much better this time round and power past ‘The Assassin Baby’.

However, there is a chance that the Mexican is simply a bad match for Figueiredo, based around his sheer toughness and own abilities to finish. We’ve seen Moreno beaten before, but right now he seems to be operating on another level, like the initial draw with the Brazilian inspired him to higher things.

Overall then, simply based on that last meeting, it’s hard not to favor Moreno here. He knows he can beat Figueiredo and there are simply too many questions around the Brazilian and how he matches with this new and improved ‘Assassin Baby’ to pick him at UFC 270.

The Pick: Moreno via fourth-round submission

#3. UFC 270: The Main Card

Exciting welterweight Michel Pereira features on this weekend's main card

In a UFC welterweight bout, Michel Pereira takes on octagon newcomer Andre Fialho. This one is difficult to pick simply because Pereira is so unpredictable. He’s got all of the skills it takes to succeed, but he has shown a tendency to gas out due to throwing too many wild strikes in the past.

However, recently ‘Demolidor’ has looked far more controlled in his fights, winning his last three in impressive fashion. If he can continue on this path, then there’s hope for him to ascend to the elite level yet. With that in mind, the pick is Pereira via knockout.

In a bantamweight clash, Cody Stamann faces Said Nurmagomedov. Not related to former UFC champ Khabib, Nurmagomedov still fights in a similar way to his fellow Dagestani; powerful, explosive wrestling and heavy-handed striking.

While he’s won three of his four octagon bouts, though, Stamann should be his toughest test to date. A consummate gatekeeper with wins over the likes of Alejandro Perez and Bryan Caraway, ‘The Spartan’ has skills in all areas. However, as primarily a wrestler and coming off two straight losses, he might be in trouble here. The pick is Nurmagomedov via decision.

Finally, in a short-notice bout at featherweight, Ilia Topuria takes on Charles Jourdain. This would initially have seen Topuria face Movsar Evloev at UFC 270, but Jourdain has taken the fight on around 10 days’ notice.

Jourdain looked excellent in his most recent fight – a win over Andre Ewell – but given his notice, as well as the extreme power of Topuria, it’s hard to see him succeeding here. The pick, therefore, is Topuria via decision.

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#4. UFC 270: The Prelims

Picks in bold

Middleweight: Rodolfo Vieira vs. Wellington Turman

Bantamweight: Raoni Barcelos vs. Victor Henry

Bantamweight: Tony Gravely vs. Saimon Oliveira

Welterweight: Trevin Giles vs. Michael Morales

Women's strawweight: Silvana Gomez Juarez vs. Vanessa Demopoulos

Lightweight: Matt Frevola vs. Genaro Valdez

Flyweight: Kay Hansen vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius

Welterweight: Jack Della Maddalena vs. Pete Rodriguez