MMA News Today (3/3/23): Israel Adesanya Predicts Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane Winner, UFC 285 Headliner Provides Health Update, And More

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Welcome to MMA News Today, a daily feature running down the most interesting stories in the world of mixed martial arts. For March 3, 2023, we’re taking a look at:

Israel Adesanya’s prediction for Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane.
‘Bon Gamin’s rumored hand issues.
Eddie Alvarez’s take on Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler.

Israel Adesanya Predicts Jones vs. Gane Winner
Former UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya recently shared his predictions for UFC 285. Taking to his YouTube channel, ‘The Last Stylebender’ analyzed the main event and both fighters’ strengths. In the case of Gane, Adesanya was quick to highlight his footwork, versatile striking and underrated grappling.
“He’s [Gane] light on his feet, very mixed striking, he mixes it up well, good grappling, people forget just because Francis [Ngannou] took him down,” Adesanya said. “But that’s the element of surprise as well.”
For Jones, meanwhile, ‘The Last Stylebender’ emphasized the former light heavyweight kingpin’s elite-level wrestling skills and long range mastery on the feet.
“Jones, wrestling, that’s his superpower isn’t it? And range control,” Adesanya explained. “Gane has got better footwork I feel, but using the range control, playing with the hands, that’s Jones, that’s his s**t, he’ll elbow you from there… The thing is, three years bro, three years away from the game is a hard ask for any man.”
Ultimately, due to Jones’ lengthy stretch of inactivity, Adesanya settled on Gane as the likelier winner.
“I think because of activity to be honest, and who he is, I’m gonna go Ciryl.”

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Ciryl Gane Sheds Light On Rumored Hand Injury
Rumors have swirled of late in regards to former UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion Ciryl Gane’s health. Many have suggested ‘Bon Gamin’ may be dealing with a fractured hand ahead of this weekend’s highly-anticipated showdown with returning MMA legend Jon Jones. An alarming photo has been making the rounds of late.

Gane underwent hand surgery back in September, shortly after his action-packed victory over Tai Tuivasa at UFC Paris.
During a recent interview with James Lynch, Gane discussed his hand’s recovery and confirmed he’d been sparring and working the heavy bag without any issues.
“No, it’s [hand] okay now,” Gane said. “No, I did already some sparring, I did already some exercise on the bag, heavy bag. Big punch. No, I’m okay with my hand. My hand is fixed.”

Gane was asked how his hand was doing weeks back when he spoke with @LynchOnSports. You can tell in this video that it looks no different than in the one photo that’s going around. You’re crazy if you think Gane is going into Saturday night with a shattered right hand. #UFC285 pic.twitter.com/54sGB9V1Yz— AFeldmanMMA (@afeldMMA) March 2, 2023

You can read more about concerns surrounding Ciryl Gane’s hand here.
“It’s Going To Be A Bad Night” – Eddie Alvarez Analyzes Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler
Former UFC Lightweight Champion Eddie Alvarez is no stranger to Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler.
During their time in Bellator, Alvarez and Chandler traded epic wins over the promotion’s Lightweight Championship. At Bellator 58, Alvarez tapped to ‘Iron’s rear-naked choke in the fourth round. Then, at Bellator 106, ‘The Underground King’ got some payback when he bested Chandler via unanimous decision.
At UFC 205, Alvarez put his newly won UFC Lightweight Championship up for grabs against ‘The Notorious’. Alvarez was largely outclassed by the Irishman, who put on an arguable career-best performance en route to a second-round TKO win.
MMA Fighting and USA Today
In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, ‘The Silent Assassin’ shared his thoughts on the upcoming McGregor/Chandler bout. According to Alvarez, McGregor will have the advantage unless Chandler finally puts his wrestling pedigree to good use, something he’s rarely done for years now.
“If I had to guess, Mike Chandler doesn’t wrestle,” Alvarez said. “If he stands with Conor, Conor’s going to knock him out. It’s a mismatch. Mike Chandler’s defense sucks. He doesn’t have good defense, boxing. He throws bombs, but Conor’s way too fast, way too quick to get hit with anything Mike Chandler is throwing. So I feel like, Mike should wrestle and wrestle quickly, and use that. And if he doesn’t, it’s going to be a bad night.”
Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below and if you want to read more about Eddie Alvarez’s take on Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler, you can do so here.

Welcome to MMA News Today, a daily feature running down the most interesting stories in the world of mixed martial arts. For March 3, 2023, we’re taking a look at:


  • Israel Adesanya’s prediction for Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane.
  • ‘Bon Gamin’s rumored hand issues.
  • Eddie Alvarez’s take on Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler.
Israel Adesanya Predicts Jones vs. Gane Winner
Former UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya recently shared his predictions for UFC 285. Taking to his YouTube channel, ‘The Last Stylebender’ analyzed the main event and both fighters’ strengths. In the case of Gane, Adesanya was quick to highlight his footwork, versatile striking and underrated grappling.


“He’s [Gane] light on his feet, very mixed striking, he mixes it up well, good grappling, people forget just because Francis [Ngannou] took him down,” Adesanya said. “But that’s the element of surprise as well.”


For Jones, meanwhile, ‘The Last Stylebender’ emphasized the former light heavyweight kingpin’s elite-level wrestling skills and long range mastery on the feet.


“Jones, wrestling, that’s his superpower isn’t it? And range control,” Adesanya explained. “Gane has got better footwork I feel, but using the range control, playing with the hands, that’s Jones, that’s his s**t, he’ll elbow you from there… The thing is, three years bro, three years away from the game is a hard ask for any man.”


Ultimately, due to Jones’ lengthy stretch of inactivity, Adesanya settled on Gane as the likelier winner.


“I think because of activity to be honest, and who he is, I’m gonna go Ciryl.”






Ciryl Gane Sheds Light On Rumored Hand Injury
Rumors have swirled of late in regards to former UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion Ciryl Gane’s health. Many have suggested ‘Bon Gamin’ may be dealing with a fractured hand ahead of this weekend’s highly-anticipated showdown with returning MMA legend Jon Jones. An alarming photo has been making the rounds of late.



Gane underwent hand surgery back in September, shortly after his action-packed victory over Tai Tuivasa at UFC Paris.


During a recent interview with James Lynch, Gane discussed his hand’s recovery and confirmed he’d been sparring and working the heavy bag without any issues.


“No, it’s [hand] okay now,” Gane said. “No, I did already some sparring, I did already some exercise on the bag, heavy bag. Big punch. No, I’m okay with my hand. My hand is fixed.”



Gane was asked how his hand was doing weeks back when he spoke with @LynchOnSports. You can tell in this video that it looks no different than in the one photo that’s going around. You’re crazy if you think Gane is going into Saturday night with a shattered right hand. #UFC285 pic.twitter.com/54sGB9V1Yz

— AFeldmanMMA (@afeldMMA) March 2, 2023[/quote]

You can read more about concerns surrounding Ciryl Gane’s hand here.


“It’s Going To Be A Bad Night” – Eddie Alvarez Analyzes Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler
Former UFC Lightweight Champion Eddie Alvarez is no stranger to Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler.


During their time in Bellator, Alvarez and Chandler traded epic wins over the promotion’s Lightweight Championship. At Bellator 58, Alvarez tapped to ‘Iron’s rear-naked choke in the fourth round. Then, at Bellator 106, ‘The Underground King’ got some payback when he bested Chandler via unanimous decision.


At UFC 205, Alvarez put his newly won UFC Lightweight Championship up for grabs against ‘The Notorious’. Alvarez was largely outclassed by the Irishman, who put on an arguable career-best performance en route to a second-round TKO win.


Collage-Maker-02-Mar-2023-12-12-PM-7549-1024x576.jpg.optimal.jpg
MMA Fighting and USA Today
In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, ‘The Silent Assassin’ shared his thoughts on the upcoming McGregor/Chandler bout. According to Alvarez, McGregor will have the advantage unless Chandler finally puts his wrestling pedigree to good use, something he’s rarely done for years now.


“If I had to guess, Mike Chandler doesn’t wrestle,” Alvarez said. “If he stands with Conor, Conor’s going to knock him out. It’s a mismatch. Mike Chandler’s defense sucks. He doesn’t have good defense, boxing. He throws bombs, but Conor’s way too fast, way too quick to get hit with anything Mike Chandler is throwing. So I feel like, Mike should wrestle and wrestle quickly, and use that. And if he doesn’t, it’s going to be a bad night.”


Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below and if you want to read more about Eddie Alvarez’s take on Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler, you can do so here.




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