Huge heavyweight title change reflected back on 15 years later before UFC 321 title bout

A massive heavyweight title change took place at UFC 121, which was 15 years ago today, and this historic lookback takes place as we are immersed in fight week for UFC 321, which is headlined by a clash for the heavyweight crown. On October 23rd, 2010, in Anaheim, California, Brock Lesnar entered the cage to defend his heavyweight crown against a surging phenom in Cain Velasquez.

At the Honda Center in the main event of the night, Velasquez would put on a classic performance with the eventual multi-time champion ascending to the UFC throne for the first time. It was an impactful affair that saw Velasquez draw blood from Lesnar and finish him with a barrage of strikes in the final minute of the opening stanza to cause a changing of the guard at heavyweight.

Curiously enough, the name of Brock Lesnar was also invoked during the fight week proceedings ahead of the UFC’s next heavyweight championship clash. The reigning champion, Tom Aspinall, was picking winners in hypothetical matchups, which at a certain point involved his opponent for Saturday, Ciryl Gane.

Aspinall initially picked Lesnar to beat the likes of Andrei Arlovski and Don Frye, but the UK native ultimately picked Gane to beat Lesnar in a fantasy fight scenario.

UFC 321 and the machinations of Tom Aspinall vs. Ciryl Gane

UFC 321 is an intriguing clash in many ways, with Tom Aspinall looking to underscore his champ status after a long hiatus, while Ciryl Gane looks to grapple with the ghosts of his past, in a sense. For Aspinall, he has been on the sidelines for over a year following a historically uncommon defense of his then-interim championship in a rematch with Curtis Blaydes last July.

After negotiations failed to come together for a title unification bout with then-champ Jon Jones, who ended up retiring from MMA, Aspinall has since been upgraded to the undisputed champion and is entering Abu Dhabi here for the first defense of his undisputed crown at UFC 321.

Conversely, for Gane, this could potentially be a third time’s the charm situation for him after the former interim champion fell short on two occasions to become the undisputed champ. This took place for Gane against the aofrementioned Jones as well as a prior Francis Ngannou fight with the French fighter aiming to finally achieve the feat that has eluded him.