Ciryl Gane's coach believes a future bout with Jon Jones is inevitable for his fighter.
Jones has been preparing to move up to heavyweight since vacating his light-heavyweight title in 2020, but is yet to make his debut at the weight class.
Having not fought in almost two years, 'Bones' has been caught up in problems outside the octagon and was arrested last September on charges of alleged domestic violence and vehicle damage.
Jones has vowed to become UFC heavyweight champion in 2022, but will need to get past the winner of Francis Ngannou vs Gane at UFC 270 to do so.
And Gane's coach Fernand Lopez thinks Gane will fight Jones regardless of what happens at UFC 270.
“It’s exciting. They’re going to fight no matter what happens with this fight,” he told Low Kick MMA.
"Ciryl Gane and Jon Jones are going to fight down the road at some point. Jon coming to heavyweight, there’s not a tougher fight for him. Fight IQ vs. Fight IQ, a lot of experience vs. a lot of freshness.
“There’s not a lot of fighters who can put themselves in a position where they are at a disadvantage and can still win.
"For example, with Jon, everything is spinning… and that’s scary for heavyweights.
"The fact that Ciryl isn’t as powerful as Francis, will equalize things with Jon Jones since he’s coming from light heavyweight. They’re going to fight, 100 per cent, we can’t avoid that collision.”
Gane has taken the UFC by storm since making his debut in 2019, winning the interim title last August in just his seventh fight for the promotion.
Jones' inactivity comes after he was caught up in issues over fighter pay, as UFC president Dana White claimed he demanded $30 million to fight Ngannou last year.
The former pound-for-pound No.1 even asked the promotion to release him and said the UFC industry had been "nothing but depressing" for him.
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Current undisputed champion Ngannou is also refusing to sign a new contract with the UFC after feeling unprotected in his current deal.
'The Predator' will be a free agent if he loses to Gane at UFC 270, but will owe the promotion another fight if he wins due to the champion's clause.
And Ngannou said he wants a clause in his new UFC deal that would also allow him to venture into boxing.
"It’s always been down the line; this is something that I’m not taking my eyes off,” he told TMZ.
This is going [to] happen either way. Even if I stay... If, or when, the UFC and I finalise a deal, the boxing part has to be in it.
“I can’t see myself retiring without boxing.”
