Ciryl Gane crowned UFC heavyweight champion and defends title vs controversial Josh Hokit

Ciryl Gane has been elevated to undisputed UFC heavyweight champion and will defend the title against Josh Hokit in November.

In the main event of UFC 334, Gane makes his first defence of the belt as he fights a controversial opponent in Hokit, who is known for playing a WWE-style character.

The news comes after UFC president Dana White “misspoke” on Friday, per the promotion’s ringside commentary team on Saturday, with White having said that Gane would not be upgraded.

Last October, Gane failed to take the undisputed belt from Tom Aspinall in their fight, with the Frenchman’s multiple eye pokes forcing a no-contest in round one. Those fouls also led Aspinall to undergo numerous surgeries, and he is still not fully healthy; as such, he vacated the undisputed title this week.

With Gane having won the interim belt in June – by stopping Alex Pereira at the White House – he has now been elevated to undisputed champion after Aspinall’s decision.

Gane, 36, therefore becomes the UFC’s first-ever undisputed champion, having twice reigned as an interim-title holder.

Gane vs Hokit will take place at Madison Square Garden, with the co-main event being a reorganised title fight between champion Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes. All-time great Nunes will come out of retirement to challenger her former teammate for the women’s bantamweight belt.

Even Gane’s interim-title win in June was controversial, with many fans believing he landed numerous illegal blows to the back of Pereira’s head.