Ciryl Gane: "We Go Forward"

“I lost my fight,” he said in a matter-of-fact nature, allowing it to be simply a thing that happened, rather than something that has to define the entirety of his being. “It was a great fight; I made some mistakes.

“And it was Francis Ngannou,” he added, his voice getting higher when he mentions the reigning heavyweight champion, as if to remind me and everyone else that he lost to an incredibly skilled and talented fighter. “He did very well, and that’s okay. We’re going to work on my mistakes, and that’s it.

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“We go forward.”

The next step forward took some time to arrive because Gane was waiting for the UFC to bring its first event to Paris.

“We were waiting for this date because the UFC was looking for this date, and it wasn’t possible to have this date in Paris without me,” said Gane, who hails from La Roche-sur-Yon, but has called Paris home for the last several years. “I’m really happy; this is a good moment for me.”

The September return date also afforded the talented French heavyweight time to return to the gym and start working on those mistakes that cost him against Ngannou, as well as giving him an opportunity to sit down and recalibrate his motivations, having learned that he has to be fighting for something more than just the opportunity to compete for UFC gold.

“My goal is the belt, but I must find a bigger motivation than that,” said Gane, nimbly explaining what he means in English flecked with a French accent.

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“Since my debut in MMA, I was flawless. It was not easy, but it was okay for me. I was training a lot, victory-after-victory on the way up, but now I’m at the top, and I must find a new motivation, another target, another goal.

“My mission is to go after the belt again, (and now I know) what I must do to get the belt for real.”

In the immediate sense, Gane has to get through Tuivasa, the streaking West Sydney representative who has used the last two years to climb into contention following a one-year sabbatical.

Always a light-hearted, carefree soul, “Bam Bam” has become far more committed to his craft as well, shifting his preparations to Dubai, where he can focus almost exclusively on the task at hand. The results have been undeniable, as Tuivasa enters the weekend on a five-fight winning streak, having earned three straight Performance of the Night bonuses without reaching the midway point of the second round.

“He’s happy to be here — he’s happy to be in Paris — and I think all of the people from the UFC, the fighters, the teammates, are happy to be in Paris because Paris is really special,” Gane said of Tuivasa, who earned his spot in Saturday’s final pairing with a second-round knockout win over Derrick Lewis at UFC 271 in February. “He’s comfortable, and I think he’s really determined to win this fight.

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“I saw some interview from him, and he wants to ‘F*** up the party,” like he said,” added Gane, cackling as he repeated Tuivasa’s plans. “But no worries — I’m going to win and we’re going to do the party together.”

Some fighters detest fighting at home, dreading the additional media obligations, the heightened expectations, and the pressures of being the local competitor with their name and image on the poster.

But Gane is the opposite, noting that the media attention was greater heading into his fight with Ngannou in January.

Sure, he has a dangerous fight in front of him and a tough opponent standing across the Octagon on Saturday night, but he will also be surrounded by teammates and additional French athletes, sharing in the opportunity compete on the biggest stage in the sport in their home nation for the very first time.

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“This is a chance to have a little more fun,” Gane said of sharing the card with teammates Nassourdine Imavov and William Gomis. “I really hope everybody is going to win this Saturday — every French fighter — and even if some guy is losing, that would be okay.

“This doesn’t make too much pressure,” he added. “I’m really happy to be on the first event in Paris, headlining. I feel really happy, and I hope that I’m going to win with a big show.”