French mixed martial arts fighter Cyril Gane defeated American Josh Hokit at UFC 334 in New York, infohub.kz reports.
The bout headlined the event. The fight lasted all five rounds and ended in Gane's favor by unanimous decision: all three judges scored it 48-47 for him.
For the 36-year-old Frenchman, this is his second consecutive win and his first defense of the UFC heavyweight championship (up to 120.2 kg). In his previous fight, he defeated Brazil's Alex Pereira to win the interim title. After that, England's Tom Aspinall vacated the undisputed belt due to health issues, and it passed to Gane. The Frenchman now has a record of 15 wins, two losses, and one no contest.
The 29-year-old Hokit suffered the first loss of his career, leaving him with ten wins. Before the event, the American was ranked fourth in the heavyweight division.
In the bout, Gane set a record for his weight class in significant strikes with 237. In addition, the Frenchman and the American together set a record for a single heavyweight fight with 383 significant strikes.