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Ciryl Gane welcomed Jon Jones back to MMA at UFC 285 earlier this month. The highly anticipated bout was short-lived, as Jones submitted Gane in the first round with ease.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu phenom and two-time silver medalist at ADCC, Nicky Rodriguez, the second best heavyweight submission grappler in the world, has now revealed that he was meant to help Gane prepare for Jones.
Rodriguez features on a bi-weekly show called The Simple Man Podcast alongside BJJ stars Ethan Crelinsten and Damien Anderson. During episode #17 of the podcast, Rodriguez disclosed why he did not travel to France to help Ciryl Gane:
"I was supposed to go to France and train with Ciryl. But the numbers didn't work out, and I had a bunch of seminars planned, and they weren't trying to compensate me. It wasn't necessarily Ciryl, but his manager and whatnot. If he had some proper grappling training, he could've done better."
Watch the video below from 5:00:
Nicky Rodriguez wrestled throughout school and college but only began training BJJ in 2018 at the age of 22. A year later, 'Nicky Rod' won a silver medal at the most prestigious submission grappling tournament in the world, the ADCC Submission Fighting World Championships.
ADCC is often referred to as 'The Olympics of BJJ', and having a two-time ADCC silver medalist during Ciryl Gane's training camp would have made an immense difference to the Frenchman's grappling ability against Jon Jones.
Ciryl Gane awarded Fight of the Year for his bout with Tai Tuivasa
Ciryl Gane and Tai Tuivasa put on a spectacle for Parisian MMA fans at UFC Fight Night 209 last year. The pair headlined the card, and 'Bon Gamin' walked out to a roar from his home fans. Tuivasa, a fan-favorite in the UFC, also received immense support as the pair traded blows for all three rounds before the stoppage.
Gane was hurt by a massive punch that floored him early on in the fight, but he regained his composure and began to pick Tai Tuivasa apart with kicks and punches.
Ciryl Gane landed the killer blow in Round 3 with a crisp right hand that wobbled Tuivasa. 'Bon Gamin' landed several strikes before the referee stopped the fight in what was a thrilling contest.
Gane recently took to Instagram to announce that he had been awarded the Fight of the Year honors during the La Sueur MMA Awards:
"Thank you for the emotions and I can't wait for the next UFC in France"
See the post below:
