The UFC has announced to stage a championship fight for the interim light heavyweight category title between Derrick Lewis and Cyril Gane on August 7 in Houston.
According to the UFC, they believe Lewis and Gane both deserve a championship fight. Lewis, who has won his last four fights, has already defeated Francis Nganou in a lackluster three-round fight in 2018.
The UFC attempted to set up a fight between Ngannou and Lewis in June before targeting UFC 265 main event on August 7. Ngannou has not fought since he stopped Stipe Miocic at UFC 260 for second fight on March 27.
However, Ngannou confirmed the UFC that he would not be ready to defend his title in August, so the UFC decided to hold an interim title fight.
Ngannou’s agent Marquel Martin addmitted they don’t know the reason behind the UFC’s decision. However, Martin belives the creation of interim title on August 7 will not impact Ngannou’s status as the undisputed champion.
“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.” Martin said.
“Francis is just now returning to the States to begin training, and he just won the title three months ago. We’re unsure of what the reasoning is behind this, but we hope to get clarity soon and figure out something with the UFC soon. At the end of the day, they’re in control of these decisions.” Martin added.
Gane, a former Ngannou teammate, is meanwhile undefeated in the UFC and has just recorded back-to-back wins in two fights that served as the main events at a gala. He earned a unanimous decision over Alexander Volkov at UFC Fight Night 190 on Saturday.
