Francis Ngannou defeated Ciryl Gane to retain the heavyweight title at UFC 270 in Anaheim with a unanimous decision victory.
If a victory for Ngannou would have been synonymous with power for many, it was in fact with a well-executed strategy that he got the better of his opponent. It was quite possible to see the evolution of the fighter who used several projections on the ground to win.
Gane started the fight strong by dancing around the champion and throwing some precise punches. Unable to approach his rival to make his strike force speak, Nagannou opted for projections on the ground and they paid off.
He knocked Gane to the ground with a bang in the third round to maintain control thereafter. The scenario repeated itself in the fourth round, so that it was possible to glimpse an equal fight at this moment. In the fifth round, Gane was the one to take Ngannou to the ground, but the latter reversed the situation. After having avoided an ankle lock, he placed himself above his former partner in training to sell out the last moments of the fight.
The judges awarded cards of 48-47, 48-47 and 49-46 in favor of Ngannou who mentioned having fought despite a knee injury.
In the semifinals, Brazilian Deiveson Figueiredo had the last laugh over Brandon Moreno to get his hands on the flyweight belt.
Figueiredo recorded a unanimous decision victory on the judges’ cards to complete this trilogy. The first fight between the two men resulted in a draw and Moreno took the belt in their most recent duel, becoming the first Mexican-born champion in the UFC.
Saturday evening, Figueiredo had the last word, certainly thanks to his strike force, which must have marked the minds of the judges. The two fighters delivered a hotly contested fight, but the new champion had a few blows.
In the third round, he sent Moreno to the mat with a powerful right hand. Both fighters studied each other for a long time in this clash, but they threw plenty of punches before the final round bell. The judges finally decided that Figueiredo was the winner with three identical cards of 48-47.
Quebecer Charles Jourdain was to cross swords with Ilia Topuria, but the latter had to forfeit due to problems during his weight loss.
UFC 270 full card
| fights | Category | Results |
| Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane | heavy | Ngannou by unanimous decision (48-47 x 2 and 49-46) |
| Brandon Moreno c. Deiveson Figueiredo | flies | Figueiredo by unanimous decision (48-47 x 3) |
| Michael Pereira vs. Andre Flalo | welterweight | Pereira by unanimous decision (29-28 x 3) |
| Cody Stamann v. Said Nurmagomedov | Roosters | Nurmagomedov by submission in the 1st round |
| Michael Morales vs. Trevin Giles | welterweight | Morales by K.-O. in the 1st round |
| Raoni Barcelos v. victor henry | Roosters | Henry by unanimous decision (30-27 x 3) |
| Jack Della Maddalena vs. Pete Rodriguez | welterweight | Maddalena by K.-O. in the 1st round |
| Tony Gravely vs. Saimon Oliveira | Roosters | Gravely by unanimous decision (30-27 x 3) |
| Matt Frevola vs. Genaro Valdez | Lightweight | Frevola by K.-O. in the 1st round |
| Silvana Gomez Juarez v. Vanessa Demopoulos | Straws | Demopoulos by submission in the 1st round |
| Kay Hansen v. Jasmine Jasudavicius | flies | Jasudavicius by unanimous decision (30-27 and 29-28 x 2) |
