Tai Tuivasa interview: UFC heavyweight ready to 'shock the world' against Ciryl Gane

Not long from the greatest test of his UFC career to date, against the home hope in the headline bout of the promotion’s breakout event in France, Tai Tuivasa is playing it as cool as a late-summer Paris night.

“I’m from Western Sydney, we’re the underdogs all the time,” the Australian tells The National, as he gets set once more to assume the role of enemy in hostile territory. “That’s fine with me. I come down there to [mess] up a party.”

On Saturday, Tuivasa takes on highly skilled Frenchman Ciryl Gane in Paris, when the UFC makes its long-awaited debut in France. Gane represents a formidable opponent, beaten only once in 11 professional MMA bouts – his unanimous-decision defeat to champion Francis Ngannou, last time out, in January.

A month later, Tuivasa was spoiling another homecoming, knocking out local favourite Derrick Lewis in Houston to lift his remarkable win streak to five. All five victories have come via knockout.

The run, spurred by a career-saving victory in Abu Dhabi in October 2020, has helped Tuivasa to No 4 in the UFC's heavyweight rankings. Come through this weekend against No 2 Gane, and a title shot apparently awaits.

“This definitely will be one of the biggest fights of my career, as of yet,” Tuivasa says. “Just more meaning on what’s on the line. Obviously, it’s a hard opponent. But that’s the great thing about fighting: we get to get in there and give it a crack… and have a crack.”

The just-concluded camp in Dubai has only buttressed the belief he can claim another eye-catching result. A resident in the emirate since early last year, Tuivasa spent the past five weeks hard at it at the sprawling new Wellfit Gym in Jumeirah Village Circle, where he has been put through an understandably arduous