Crowd favorite Josh Hokit handed first career loss by Ciryl Gane at UFC 334

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There was no joy at Madison Square Garden by the end of the night, only vocal displeasure with who was deemed the winner of the UFC 334 heavyweight title fight.

There was no joy at Madison Square Garden by the end of the night, only vocal displeasure with who was deemed the winner of the UFC 334 heavyweight title fight.

The fans wanted Josh Hokit to take the belt off Ciryl Gane on Saturday night (which bled into Sunday). The three judges had other ideas, awarding unanimous 48-47 scorecards.

“I will rejoice in my suffering. Suffering builds endurance. And endurance builds hope,” said Hokit afterward in the Octagon, absent his typical ugly brashness on the mic in the wake of his first career loss.

Hokit, an overwhelming darling of the Garden crowd, immediately shot for and secured a single-leg takedown, but Gane managed to get back to striking distance. Hokit’s frantic pressure made the Muay Thai striker from France less comfortable than normal but still more successful in landing punches against the brawling American, though Hokit in turn found his successes.

Gane again got snatched up for a more thunderous takedown late in the first frame, this time atop the center logo, and Hokit added some strikes for good measure to end a competitive opening round.

Hokit shot again to start the second, but Gane was finally ready for it and deftly defended. The uppercut, a solid weapon in the first, was again landing for Gane, and followed up in combination as Hokit’s frenetic energy settled.

But Gane noticeably had slowed by the midway point as well, and Hokit continued to walk forward. Wild punches from Hokit found a home with increasing regularity on the Frenchman, whose face bore a small smear of blood from his nose. They appeared to be getting to him.

Tired as he appeared, Gane fared better at stuffing takedowns, or at least not going down for long, early in the third. Instead, Hokit switched to clinch work and dirty boxing to find success on offense. He force-fed flips of the bird to cap off the frame, a staple of his public persona. Gane was not without his own damage dealt in the frame, however.

Gane, finding a second wind but clearly…

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