France’s Cyril Gain scored an electrifying knockout win over Australian Tai Tuivasa in front of a home crowd at the Accor Arena on the banks of the Seine River, the first major event in the country since the sport was legalized in 2020.
Inspired by a catchy rendition of the first round of the French national anthem “La Marseillaise”, the two veterans put on the barn-burners of a fight in the main event, which led to a long wait for the game to be regulated. Fans.
Australian Tuivasa sent Gaine to crash into the canvas with a right-handed hammer in the second round, but Gaine roared back with a series of brutal blows to the body that almost ended the fight.
Two minutes into the third gain, Tuivasa was startled by a head-kick, and although the teak-tough Aussie initially refused to go down, Gain piled under the pressure.
A right uppercut marked the start of the end, and Gaine slid his man down, hitting a thunderbolt with both hands to secure KO with 37 seconds in the frame.
“If anyone had any doubts about how good the French crowd is, there’s no doubt anymore,” Gaine said before repeatedly thanking them and calling for the title shot.
In the co-main event, former middleweight title-holder Robert Whitaker delivered a brilliant performance to out-point Marvin Vettori, putting him in contention for another shot over the belt despite losing the title fight to defending champion Israel Adesanya. could. in February.
With the red, white and blue of the French flag on the octagonal floor between bouts, the six-fight main card got off to a slow start for energetic home fans as English fighter Nathaniel Wood defeated Frenchman Charles Jourdain by unanimous decision.
Paris’s William Gomis soon gave him something to cheer about, as he survived a dangerous late submission attempt from Jarno Arens before winning on the judges’ scorecard.
“I listened to the crowd and I thought no, I can’t give up now – I’d rather die right here than give up. I’m going to die rather than give up,” Gomis said after the fight in a happily-ever-after interview. The fans roared in their approval.