Tom Aspinall believes performance will be a factor in the upcoming rematch between Cyril Gane (12-2) and Alexander Volkov (38-10).
Gane and Volkov are scheduled to rematch at UFC 310 on December 7th at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The two met back in 2021, when the Frenchman won a lackluster unanimous decision over Volkov.
But Aspinall believes things could play out differently this time. Volkov bounced back from his loss to Gane with a decision win over Marcin Tybura, but immediately followed up with a submission loss against Aspinall. But “Drago” has since racked up four straight wins, including three finishes in two years. The Russian is fresh off a lopsided unanimous decision victory over former training partner Sergey Pavlovich in June of this year.
Gane, on the other hand, has had wins and losses since winning against Volkov, with three wins and two losses. ‘Bon Gamin’ has not fought since September 2023, when he defeated Sergey Spivac by technical knockout.
Aspinall believes Volkov has improved a lot since losing to Volkov in 2022. “Ratel” also predicts that the Russian will have an advantage over Gehn due to the difference in recent activities.
“I think it’s a 50-50 fight,” Aspinall told Casino Hawks. “I know they fought before, but it was an absolute stinker and the first fight was terrible. He has improved a lot since fighting Volkov. He has changed his training situation and Gane is out of action. Gane fights once a year against a suitable opponent. It’s difficult to say. He’s been very active. I think he’s fought four or five times since we fought a few years ago, which is a lot for an elite heavyweight. I still think it’s a close fight, because Gane is very active. I think it will be a much closer fight than last time, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Volkov wins.”
