Gane stops Lewis, wins the break heavyweight title at UFC 265.

Gane stops Lewis, wins the break heavyweight title at UFC 265.

HOUSTON (AP) — Ciryl Gane halted Derrick Lewis with a whirlwind of ground-and-pound strikes in the third round at UFC 265 on Saturday night, winning a break UFC heavyweight title and the following shot at champion Francis Ngannou 2021.

A little more than three years after Gane (10-0) made his blended hand-to-hand fighting introduction, the Frenchman overwhelmed the title session at the Toyota Center in Lewis' old neighborhood. 

Gane was booed vociferously from the second he ventured onto the field floor, yet he to a great extent stayed away from each strike tossed by the more slow, more purposeful Lewis prior to harming the veteran over and over in the third round. Lewis at last imploded in torment with his back to Gane, who completed him on the ground with head strikes. 

"I'm cheerful, however I'm feeling somewhat awful for my man before his fans," Gane said from the enclosure while Lewis' Houston fans voiced their dismay. "I can deal with the boos, however, I'm with you all, I'm with you. Huge love for Lewis, and huge love for his family." 

Gane is everything except destined to be the following rival for Ngannou, who won the genuine UFC heavyweight title just four months prior by beating Stipe Miocic. The UFC's choice to grant an interval belt was met with disparagement around MMA, yet Gane's triumph sets up the title matchup that presumably would have happened in any case. 

Gane and Ngannou are previous colleagues, putting an additional edge on their gathering. 

"I know him in Paris," Gane said. "The battle will go off, so how about we go now. How about we simply go." 

The well-known Lewis (25-8) had prevailed upon four straight battles the previous two years, reviving his expectations of winning his first UFC title. However, he lost to Daniel Cormier in his lone past title shot three years prior, and he had all the earmarks of being overmatched against Gane. 

Gane had a title chance in his seventh UFC session, covering his transient ascent from a noteworthy muay Thai vocation to the zenith of MMA. Gane even acknowledged this battle while his better half was because of conceiving an offspring in under about fourteen days. 

Lewis couldn't get a hand on Gane in the initial two rounds, unrealistically landing only two critical strikes. Gane was undeniably more athletic and tricky than the 36-year-old Lewis, whose achievement has consistently been based on landing power shots to compensate for his athletic lacks. 

Gane dissected Lewis in the initial two rounds, and he hurt the veteran with an uppercut and a knee from the get-go in the third. Lewis was stunned, and he didn't recuperate a lot throughout a break to supplant his mouthpiece before Gane completed him. 

On the undercard, previous featherweight champ José Aldo beat individual Brazilian Pedro Munhoz by consistent choice for his initially consecutive triumphs in 2 1/2 years. Welterweight Vicente Luque won a to and fro wrestling match with Michael Chiesa in the first round, handling a D'Arce stifle minutes after almost being submitted himself.