Surging heavyweight knockout artist Francis Ngannou will be back in action this July at UFC 239 when he takes on former UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos, per a recent report by ESPN’s Ariel Helwani.
Francis Ngannou vs. Junior dos Santos scheduled for UFC 239, July 6 in Las Vegas, according to sources. More shortly.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) March 30, 2019
Ngannou, 32, is coming off a blistering 26-second knockout victory over former heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez at UFC’s debut on ESPN this past February. It was arguably the biggest win of Ngannou’s growing career. Before that, “Predator” defeated Curtis Blaydes via first-round TKO this past November to end a two-fight losing streak suffered at the hands of Stipe Miocic and Derrick Lewis. Incredibly, Ngannou’s last two Octagon appearances have lasted a total of just 71 seconds.
Dos Santos, 35, has seen a career resurgence since suffering a knockout defeat at the hands of Miocic back in 2017. The Brazilian veteran has now won his last three UFC bouts, including a recent TKO finish over “Black Beast” earlier this month. That is the best stretch of fights for JDS since he won his first nine UFC appearances from 2008-2012. Despite his up-and-down success over the past few years, “Cigano” is still one dangerous dude at the heavyweight level and more than capable of putting Ngannou in trouble this summer.
UFC 239 takes place on July 6 live on pay-per-view (PPV) from inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, and will feature a main event clash between light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and streaking knockout artist Thiago Santos. The event will also showcase a co-main event between current UFC women’s bantamweight and featherweight champion Amanda Nunes and former 135-pound queen Holly Holm.
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