For the second consecutive event, heavyweight Ciryl Gane headlines, once again seeking a bounce-back victory at home as he squares off with surging “Polar Bear” Serghei Spivac in the main event. It’s also a homecoming of sorts in the co-main event as streaking flyweight contender Manon Fiorot puts her place in the pecking order on the line against former strawweight queen Rose Namajunas, who moves up to the 125-pound ranks for the first time, looking to begin a run to a second UFC title.
UFC Paris Fight By Fight Preview
In addition to the high-profile names competing in the final two bouts on Saturday’s fight card, this weekend’s show also marks the debut of a pair of promising new arrivals, and the return of an undefeated prospect looking for his second UFC victory.
All three profile as competitors you could be hearing from in the upper reaches of their respective divisions somewhere not too far down the line, so settle in and keep reading to find out more about them in this edition of Fighters on the Rise.
Caolan Loughran
Unbeaten in eight professional appearances, Caolan Loughran is another in the long line of former Cage Warriors champions to graduate to the UFC roster.
The Irish bantamweight trains with the crew at Team Kaobon in Liverpool and touches down in Paris having won each of his last four outings by second-round stoppage, which includes victories over former Cage Warriors titleholder Luke Shanks and his title win over Dylan Hazan in May. “The Don” has finished all but one of his eight wins inside the distance and has been chomping at the bit to get his chance to compete inside the Octagon, including raising his hand to face Cameroon Saaiman earlier this year when the undefeated South African needed an opponent on short notice.
An explosive, powerful athlete with keen finishing instincts, Loughran has looked the part of a future contender thus far in his career, having faced solid competition as he’s continued progressing up the ranks. He registered four wins in 13 months under the Cage Warriors banner, toppling opponents that had won 25 of their 28 combined appearances, and now looks to keep rolling as he makes his UFC debut this weekend opposite fellow newcomer Yanis Ghemmouri.
Brandishing a 12-1 MMA record and a number of kickboxing accomplishments as well, Ghemmouri himself is an intriguing addition to the bantamweight ranks. A teammate and training partner of UFC lightweight Fares Ziam, “The Desert Warrior” arrives in Paris riding a nine-fight winning streak, the last three of which have come under the Brave CF banner.
This is an excellent introductory pairing for these emerging bantamweights and a chance for Loughran to show he is truly ready to hit the ground running and establish himself as one of the top young names in the talent-rich 135-pound weight class.
Morgan Charriere
“The Last Pirate” is another former Cage Warriors champ making the walk to the Octagon for the first time this weekend, as Charriere takes on another newcomer, Manolo Zecchini, on Saturday’s preliminary card.
Now 27 years old, Charriere won the CW featherweight strap at the end of 2020 with a third-round stoppage win over Perry Andre Goodwin. He dropped the belt to Jordan Vucenic four months later in a battle that ended in a split decision, and then came up short in an interim title fight against Paul Hughes six months after that, again losing by the slightest of margins. Since then, he’s rattled off three straight victories, most recently registering a third-round stoppage win over two-time LFA title challenger Diego Silva.
Don’t let his 18-9-1 record fool you: Charriere is an outstanding addition to the roster and a promising talent in the featherweight division. He started fighting professionally at 19, took a couple losses early in his career as one does when they’re just figuring things out, and four of his last five setbacks have come against competitors that could all be knocking on the door of the Top 15 if they too were competing inside the Octagon, and they’ve all been narrow defeats on the scorecards, as well.
Zecchini is a fellow new arrival and looking to make the jump from Venator FC like several of his fellow countrymen in the past. He’s won each of his last two outings by stoppage and four of his last five overall, but is taking a major step forward against a battle-tested opponent here.
There are a number of big names people will surely be talking about when the smoke clears and the dust settles in Paris on Sunday morning, but there is a real good chance that Charriere makes an impression and announces his presence on the big stage.
Farid Basharat
The younger half of the UFC’s undefeated Basharat Brothers, 26-year-old Farid makes his second trip into the Octagon this weekend, welcoming Kledyson Rodrigues to the bantamweight division in Paris.
Like his older brother Javid, Basharat matriculated to the UFC through Dana White’s Contender Series, parlaying an 8-0 run on the regional circuit into an opportunity to compete in Las Vegas, and then a win over Allan Begosso into a chance to fight on the biggest stage in the sport. After dealing with an injury following his DWCS victory, Basharat finally made his promotional debut in March, earning a unanimous decision win over Da’Mon Blackshear, which is a victory that has aged quite well in the nearly six months since.
As a younger sibling myself, I’m loathe to continually draw comparisons to his older brother because I know from experience how frustrating it can be, however there is no way around it, as the two share a great deal of similarities in terms of their approaches, their abilities, and their upside in the 135-pound weight class.
Basharat is one of those competitors that doesn’t blow you away with any one skill, but is razor-sharp in every realm, fighting with supreme confidence in every position. While the level of competition he faced on his way to the UFC was limited, it wasn’t by choice, as there weren’t a lot of people rushing to face him.
In Rodrigues, he faces a fellow DWCS alum with a limited amount of experience in the Octagon, but whose most recent appearance showed the level of talent he carries with him into battle. At UFC 284 in February, Rodrigues needed just 59 seconds to dispatch Shannon Ross, racing across the cage and drowning the Australian veteran in a tidal wave of punches and kicks to register his first UFC win.
Order UFC 293: Adesanya vs Strickland
But the Brazilian missed weight for that contest, and then again ahead of his June assignment opposite Tatsuro Taira, resulting in the fight being canceled and “KR” moved to bantamweight, where Basharat awaits.
This is another good measuring stick opportunity for the skilled and confident Las Vegas resident. The division is loaded with fighters jockeying for position in the pecking order, and August delivered a handful of big efforts up and down the ranks, ratcheting up the pressure on hopefuls like Basharat as he heads into battle in Paris.
A win won’t necessarily elevate him into range to garner a ranking or even face a ranked opponent next, but this weekend’s contest should help provide a clearer indication of where he current fits within the talent-rich division, and how quickly we could see him making a case for a place in the Top 15.
Don’t miss a moment of UFC Fight Night: Gane vs Spivac, live from the Accor Arena in Paris, France. Prelims start at a special time 12pm ET/9 am PT, while the main card kicks off at 3pm ET/12pm PT.
