Brett OkamotoESPN staff writer2 min read
It’s amazing how much better Cyril Jane looks in the octagon when he’s not fighting Jon Jones.
Jin (12-2) qualified by second-round TKO over Sergei Spivak (16-4) in the main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday inside the Accor Arena in Paris. It was a tactical highlight for Jin in his first appearance since the lackluster show against Jones in a heavyweight title bout in March.
“I’m really happy about that, because my last fight was…” Jin said, shrugging. “Today, it was my job to prove that I am still here.”
The end came at the 3-minute, 44-second mark, as Gene fired shot after shot into Spivak’s body and head him into the fence. Spivak refused to go down, but was a sitting target for Jane’s expert precision. According to UFC stats, Jin has landed 95 total strikes to only 14 for Spivak.
It was a strikingly different performance from Jane’s in March, when Jones, who had moved up from light heavyweight and come off a three-year hiatus, effortlessly knocked him to the floor and put him on the guillotine in just two minutes.
Gene’s defense looked much better against Spivak on Saturday, and his choice of shots on the feet was as impressive as ever. He landed front kicks on Spivak’s leg and decimated him with punches and knees to the body. This was Jin’s ninth win in the UFC. His only loss came in title fights.
Jin, the former interim champion, remains engaged in the main talks despite his lopsided loss to Jones. Jones is set to defend his heavyweight title against Stipe Miocic in November and has hinted he might retire. Waiting in the wings are names including Sergey Pavlovich, Tom Aspinall and Jane.
In the co-main event, French flyweight contender Manon Fioro (11-1) added a big name to her title resume, defeating former strawweight champion Rose Namajunas (11-6) via unanimous decision. The judges scored the bout 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 for Fiorot.
Fiorot landed a jab and a right hook to knock Namajunas to his feet, while thwarting all six of Namajunas’ takedown attempts. Fiorot is 6-0 in the UFC and is a contender, along with Erin Blanchfield, for the title against the winner of a rematch between Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko on September 16.
“This was an ex-champion,” Fiorot said through an interpreter. “I’m the one who needs to win one of those champions. I deserve the chance to be a champion.”
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