Josh Hokit vows to out-cheat Ciryl Gane if things get dirty at UFC 334: 'I owe it to the fans'

Josh Hokit can change the direction of the UFC heavyweight landscape with a win at UFC 334 this Saturday.

After debuting in the promotion little more than a year ago, the polarizing Hokit has wasted no time paving his way to his first championship bout. Standing in his way will be the divisional mainstay turned undisputed king, Ciryl Gane, who makes his first defense of the UFC heavyweight title following Tom Aspinall’s vacating of the belt in September.

Every Hokit fight brings noise in and out of the Octagon, with the former NFL player known for his brashness and controversial antics on the microphone. Speaking in-studio on Tuesday’s edition of “The Ariel Helwani Show,” Hokit said there’s no line he won’t cross to get in the champ’s head as UFC 334 fight week kicks off in earnest in New York City.

“If I’m putting the entertainment cap on, I owe it to the fans to do that. On top of that, he has an opportunity to do something about it,” Hokit told Uncrowned of Gane.

“I believe all things are fair when it comes to war. He signed the contract, we’re at war, and anything goes. No line. F*** him and his mom. It is what it is.”

“If we were in a different day and age, that’s how it’d be,” Hokit continued. “I’d kill him, and then where’s his family at now? They’re my people now? I still have the primal sense of that mentality. And if he kills me, it’s the same thing.”

Hokit, 28, has fought only four times in the UFC ahead of his first main-event bout. But in those fights, he’s proven himself to be as game as they come, notably putting on a Fight of the Year contender with Curtis Blaydes in April, before finishing Derrick Lewis on the White House’s south lawn at UFC Freedom 250 this past June.

Gane is the more seasoned fighter in every respect, but Hokit isn’t lacking confidence.

“I’m going to pressure him, and he only has a few options after that, whether he overextends or he cowers away and tries to run. He cannot run forever,” Hokit said.

“He’s going to try to pitter-patter, point [fight]. He won’t be able to stay away from me forever, and if he tries, he will be tired from just that. I’ll get my hands on him one way or the other and then f***ing wear him out. Make him look like any other sloppy heavyweight.”

Fairly or unfairly, Gane has garnered a reputation for being a dirty fighter during his UFC career, with the most notable example coming in his October 2025 no-contest against Aspinall. After a double eye-poke late in Round 1, Aspinall was ruled unable to continue and remains sidelined more than a year later due to issues with his eyes. That ultimately led to the Brit relinquishing his title, making Gane the new champion after his interim title win over Alex Pereira at UFC Freedom 250.

But the Pereira performance only added fuel to the flames of controversy for Gane. Pereira protested afterward that Gane landed several illegal blows to the back of his head during the bout’s finishing sequence, which he said went uncalled by referee Herb Dean.

Hokit said Tuesday that he sees the questionable parts of Gane’s game, and he’s willing to fight fire with fire if he’s fouled at UFC 334.

“If he pokes my eye, I’m going to hit him in the back of the head. He hits me in the back of the head, I’m hitting him low. He hits me low, I’m stabbing him now,” Hokit said.

“He stabs me, I’m shooting him. He shoots me, I’m finding his family, killing them. He finds my family, kills them, I’m going to France, conquering them.

“That’s the mentality, whether that happens or not. That obviously won’t happen, but I’m not worried about it.”

Although Hokit’s rise has been rapid, he said he’s still treating himself like a prospect in his preparation for UFC 334 while training at Albuquerque’s JacksonWink MMA gym. Hokit has earned enough money in his UFC career so far to buy a house in central California, but instead has been staying in the JacksonWink MMA dorms, paying $1,000 to live there during fight camps.

It’s not the most luxurious setup, but that’s what Hokit likes about it, because it’s gotten him to this point: A world title fight in the world’s most famous arena.

“It keeps you humble. … I have all my stuff in that little room,” Hokit said. “There’s something about a cockroach crawling across the floor, a crackhead keeping you up at night — it reminds you of how it all started for you.

“I don’t know [if I would leave with a title win]. I think it’s like a beacon for hope. People see me [and it’s an inspiration]. I’m fighting for a heavyweight title, and I look like a normal guy. So when people see me, it’s kind of inspiring. He’s still living at the dorm room, and he has money and a nice house.”

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