Josh Hokit has spent the buildup to UFC 334 trying to get inside Ciryl Gane’s head, and the heavyweight champion’s response is basically a shrug and a grin. Gane told reporters this week, as reported by Yahoo Sports and Sherdog, that he’s been entertained by the challenger’s social media content and has no plans to get dragged into it.
“I saw his clip videos, music on social media. It was pretty funny,” Gane said. “I’m really happy to have him put his fight and do some entertainment. That’s perfect.”
That’s a very French way of telling a guy his roast landed with zero impact. Hokit has been laying it on thick, with MMA Sucka running a headline about him bringing “a French twist” as he slammed the champ. Gane apparently watched the whole production like it was a halftime show.
The fight
Gane defends the UFC heavyweight title against Hokit (10-0) on Saturday, Nov. 14, at Madison Square Garden in New York. UFC News noted on X that this is the first title defense of Gane’s reign, so the Frenchman is trying to turn a belt into a run while Hokit is trying to stay perfect against the best opponent of his career.
Gane laughed at the content but he did not laugh at the man making it. He was specific about what worries him, pointing to Hokit’s speed and his athletic background.
“He is light, more than me. So that’s why, because also he’s an athlete. He’s from NCAA wrestling, so that’s huge. To the NFL also. So he’s a really great athlete. He moves really fast,” Gane said.
Then came the part that reads half compliment, half needle. “He’s not maybe the best striker out, or maybe even the best wrestler. But I like to say, I think he has a good fight IQ. Yeah, he can manage very well.”
That’s the champion saying, politely, that Hokit doesn’t do any one thing better than everybody else but knows how to stitch it together. A wrestling and football athlete who can make good decisions in there is a legitimate problem at heavyweight, where plenty of guys win on size and then run out of ideas.
Gane’s camp
Gane sounded at ease with his preparation. “The training camp was on point,” he said. “We built something really strong around me, like with my team. And we feel really comfortable. We improve, we still improve, improve, improve day after day.”
He said the only thing left is staying locked in once the cage door shuts. “I know I’m ready technically, tactically, physically. So I just need to be present, 100% present, like in the cage,” Gane said.
Quick take
I love a challenger who shows up with a microphone and a music video, and Hokit is clearly having fun with the villain role. But the trash talk only matters if it changes how the other guy fights, and Gane is treating it like free content. The sneaky best line of the week is the champ calling Hokit maybe not the best striker and maybe not the best wrestler, which is the nicest possible way to tell an undefeated guy he’s about to get found out. If Hokit can’t get Gane frustrated before Saturday, he’d better be able to get him down at the Garden. The 10-0 record says he’s never needed a plan B. Gane’s job on Nov. 14 is to make him find one.
