Ciryl Gane defends his UFC undisputed heavyweight title against Josh Hokit at UFC 334 in New York on Saturday. Gane was promoted to undisputed champion in September after Tom Aspinall vacated the belt. The co-main event features Amanda Nunes returning from retirement to face Kayla Harrison for the bantamweight title. The fight was postponed from January due to Harrison's neck injury. Britain's Chris Duncan faces Drew Dober on the prelims. The main card starts at 02:00 GMT, with the headline fight likely at 04:30 GMT on Sunday. Stephen Thompson faces Charles Radtke in the early prelims.
Gane beat Alex Pereira for the interim title in June. He was upgraded to undisputed champion after Aspinall's eye injury complications. Gane, 36, lost previous title fights against Francis Ngannou in 2022 and Jon Jones in 2023. He has won 14 of 17 fights with seven knockouts. Hokit, 28, is fifth in the heavyweight rankings and fighting for the title after one year in the UFC. He has won all four UFC fights, including a win over Derrick Lewis in June. Hokit's controversial personas and racially aggravating comments have drawn criticism. Dana White called his remarks "gross" and "inappropriate." Hokit is unbeaten in 10 professional fights with six knockouts.
Harrison and Nunes are friends and former teammates at American Top Team Gym. Nunes, 38, is widely regarded as the best women's MMA fighter of all time. She retired in 2023 after a 15-year career with 23 wins from 28 fights. She is the only woman to hold UFC titles in two divisions. Harrison seeks to dethrone the legendary former champion.
Source: BBC Sport · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing