Derrick Lewis vs. Ciryl Gane interim heavyweight title fight set to headline UFC 265 in Houston

Derrick Lewis will be fighting for UFC gold on August 7 in Houston, it just won’t be for the undisputed belt.

Lewis was reportedly set to face Francis Ngannou in the main event of UFC 265 for the heavyweight title. Yet, the promotion couldn’t come to terms with Ngannou on the timeframe and now the UFC is set for an interim title. According to UFC president, Dana White, who told ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Lewis will face Ciryl Gane for the interim heavyweight title in the main event of UFC 265.

Derrick Lewis (@Thebeast_ufc) will face Ciryl Gane (@ciryl_gane) in an interim heavyweight title fight in the main event of UFC 265 on Aug. 7 in Houston, per Dana White (@danawhite). pic.twitter.com/wy3frMtyjJ

— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) June 28, 2021

Derrick Lewis will face Ciryl Gane in an interim heavyweight title fight in the main event of UFC 265 on Aug. 7 in Houston, per Dana White.

According to Okamoto, Ngannou was unavailable to defend his title in June or August. White said the company believes Lewis and Gane are deserving of a title shot now. However, Ngannou’s manager, Marquel Martin spoke to ESPN and said “This comes as a complete shock. To make an interim title so soon, if you look at the history of this division, it comes as a surprise. We hope to get clarity and figure out something with the UFC soon.”

Derrick Lewis (25-7) is coming off a KO win over Curtis Blaydes in a big upset to cement himself as a top contender. Prior to that, “The Black Beast” earned a KO win over Aleksei Oleinik after back-to-back decisions over Ilir Latifi and Blagoy Ivanov. He has fought for UFC gold back at UFC 230 and lost by submission to Daniel Cormier just weeks after he knocked out Alexander Volkov in a comeback win. He also holds a decision win over Francis Ngannou.

Ciryl Gane (9-0), meanwhile, just fought on Saturday where he beat Volkov in the main event of UFC Vegas 30. It was his second straight main event after he edged out Jairzinho Rozenstruik in a lackluster fight. He’s 6-0 in the UFC and holds wins over Junior dos Santos and Tanner Boser among others. If he can beat Lewis, it would set up a fight against his former teammate in Ngannou.

The other big news of this fight is the fact the event will take place in Houston. Lewis is from Houston and will get a massive pop from the crowd when he faces Ciryl Gane. Amanda Nunes will defend her bantamweight title against Julianna Pena in the co-main event.

Who do you think will win, Derrick Lewis or Ciryl Gane?