Ciryl Gane made a successful first defense of his heavyweight title, earning a hard-fought unanimous decision over Josh Hokit at UFC 334 on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Gane, who was elevated from interim champion to undisputed heavyweight champion after Tom Aspinall vacated the title in September, out-struck Hokit across the fight to retain the belt. Hokit entered the championship bout in only his fifth UFC appearance, having earned a contract on “Dana White’s Contender Series” in August of the previous year before making his promotional debut.
In the co-main event, Kayla Harrison ended a rivalry nearly eight years in the making by submitting Amanda Nunes with a rear-naked choke early in the fourth round. Nunes was competing for the first time after a 3½-year retirement but was unable to overcome the reigning women’s bantamweight champion.
Earlier on the card, fan favorite Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson dominated Charles Radtke before securing a third-round TKO. Thompson landed a spectacular spinning kick to the head that left Radtke unsteady, prompting the referee to stop the bout.
Brett Okamoto, Dre Waters and Jeff Wagenheim broke down the most notable fights from MSG.