The month of August has just begun, which means exciting things for the combat sports world. That includes UFC 265, which is scheduled to take place on Saturday, August 7 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. It’s an absolutely loaded card, which will be headlined by an interim UFC Heavyweight Championship bout between Derrick Lewis and Ciryl Gane. Considering how the actual champion, Francis Ngannou, allegedly declined to defend his championship, UFC was left with no option but to find an interim titleholder.
Here’s a look at how BetOnline’s UFC 265 odds are shaping up.
UFC 265 Odds: Derrick Lewis vs. Ciryl Gane
Odds via BetOnline as of Tuesday, August 3
- Record: Lewis (25-7-0) vs Gane (9-0-0)
- Moneyline: Lewis (+300) vs Gane (-375)
- Total: 4.5 Rounds — Over (+160), Under (-200)
- Most likely method of victory: Gane by KO/TKO (+150)
Lewis Enters as Underdog
Despite being in the middle of a four-match winning streak, Derrick Lewis will enter Saturday’s fight as the +300 underdog. This will be the 36-year-old’s second chance at winning UFC gold, with his first being when he lost a heavyweight championship bout to Daniel Cormier back in November 2018. A lot of time has passed since then and Lewis will be looking to capitalize on his newfound momentum at UFC 265.
According to BetOnline, Lewis’ best shot to win at UFC 265 will be to defeat Gane by KO/TKO (+300). Obviously, that’s a little easier said than done considering how the latter has yet to be defeated at all in his career. Still, if anyone can knock Gane out, it’s Lewis — who owns the UFC record for most knockout victories with 12. In fact, Lewis has won each of his last two fights by KO/TKO before even reaching the halfway point of Round 2. It’s like he has a new lease on life and is looking to capitalize on it against Gane at UFC 265. It’s certainly an uphill battle, but Lewis knows what it’s like to fight for the gold in the past and his veteran experience could come back to help him. Only time will tell if he can pull it off.
Gane UFC 265 Odds
On the other hand, Ciryl Gane is expected to walk out of UFC 265 as the interim heavyweight champion at -375 odds. The 31-year-old Frenchman first joined UFC back in 2019 and hasn’t taken his foot off of the gas pedal ever since. He’s won each of his six fights since joining the company and is a perfect 9-0-0 on his career. The thing is that Gane doesn’t just win his fights with one method. He’s won by KO/TKO, submission or by decision three times each, which shows that he’s not a one-trick pony. He also holds recent victories over fighters like Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Alexander Volkov, so it’s not like he’s fighting unknown talents.
Now, Gane will face another obstacle on his meteoric rise as he faces Lewis at UFC 265. While the former certainly lacks the experience that the latter has, it’s not unfathomable to imagine him winning — especially with BetOnline predicting him to win via KO/TKO. Lewis has lost seven times in his career and four of those losses have been by knockout, which opens the door for Gane. In fact, Gane averages 5.13 significant strikes per landed on 54% accuracy while Lewis absorbs 2.16 significant strikes per minute and has a 44% strike defense rating. In other words, Gane should be throwing more strikes than what Lewis is used to, which means there may be more opportunities to break him down as the fight goes on.
At the end of the day, Gane is one of the fastest-rising stars that the UFC has and is showing no signs of slowing down. Even though Lewis has had a storied career, it may not be enough to stop “Bon Gamin.”
