After months of speculation, the UFC officially revealed the full lineup for UFC Freedom 250, set to take place on the South Lawn of the White House. The blockbuster co-main event will see Alex Pereira attempt to make history by moving up to heavyweight to face Ciryl Gane for the interim heavyweight title, with undisputed champion Tom Aspinall currently sidelined.
While Pereira has already teased fans with glimpses of his physical transformation ahead of the bout, Gane appears to be leaving no stone unturned in his preparation. The Frenchman has brought in elite kickboxer Artem Vakhitov, a familiar name to Pereira, as part of his training camp.
For context, Vakhitov shares significant history with ‘Poatan.’ The Russian defeated Pereira to claim the GLORY light heavyweight title at GLORY 78 in Rotterdam in 2021, avenging a split-decision loss to the Brazilian at GLORY 77 earlier that year. Their rivalry marked the end of Pereira’s kickboxing run before his full transition to MMA, with both fighters going a combined 10 rounds across their two high-level encounters.
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Recently, coach Andrey Busygin shared sparring footage of Gane working alongside Vakhitov, highlighting the seriousness of the Frenchman’s preparation. A decorated striker, Vakhitov enjoyed a lengthy reign as GLORY champion and has since transitioned to MMA, compiling a 3-1 record. Though his debut ended in an injury TKO loss to Ashraf Bashandy at Open FC 31, he rebounded in 2024 with two rapid first-round finishes.
Those performances earned him a spot on Dana White’s Contender Series, where he stopped the previously unbeaten Islem Masraf. Despite being offered a UFC contract, Vakhitov reportedly declined terms and returned to kickboxing, later challenging Rico Verhoeven at GLORY 100.
Bringing in a fighter who has both defeated Pereira and shared extensive ring time with him could prove invaluable for Gane. With his path back to a title shot already complicated, ‘Bon Gamin’ can’t afford another setback on June 14.
Gane, a former interim champion, has twice fallen short in bids for undisputed gold: losing a unanimous decision to Francis Ngannou at UFC 270 and suffering a first-round submission defeat to Jon Jones at UFC 285. More recently, his clash with Aspinall at UFC 321 ended in a no-contest following an accidental eye poke, leaving the champion still recovering.
Meanwhile, Pereira is chasing history as he eyes a third UFC title in a new division. He last competed at UFC 320, where he reclaimed the light heavyweight belt with a first-round stoppage of Magomed Ankalaev before vacating the title to pursue his heavyweight ambitions. Whether Gane’s strategy of bringing in Vakhitov pays off remains to be seen. A similar approach was previously attempted by Jamahal Hill, who trained with Pereira’s former opponents ahead of UFC 300, only to suffer a brutal knockout loss.
Kshitiz Kumar Singh is a UFC Writer at NY Fights with over three years of experience in sports journalism and content creation. Known for his sharp storytelling and passion for combat sports, he has written in-depth features on stars like Brock Lesnar, Randy Couture, and Ilia Topuria. Before joining NY Fights, Kshitiz worked as a UFC Editor at EssentiallySports while currently serving as a WWE Editor at FirstSportz. His admiration for legends like Georges St-Pierre continues to inspire his detailed and engaging MMA coverage. Whether he’s covering the Octagon or the squared circle, Kshitiz is committed to delivering accurate, high-quality content. Outside the world of sports, he’s a dedicated cinephile, often found practicing monologues from his favorite Al Pacino films, combining his love for cinema with storytelling.