“This is the same thing that we saw prior to his title fight. Just remember that.”
Has heavy-hitting knockout artist Francis Ngannou evolved since his title loss to Stipe Miocic last year, or is the Cameroonian the same fighter we saw prior to the Miocic bout and merely the product of renewed and unwarranted hype on social media?
According to reigning heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier, who trains at San Jose’s American Kickboxing Academy (AKA), Ngannou hasn’t changed in the year and a half since his loss to Miocic and blames fans for getting over excited about ‘The Predator’s’ recently slew of knockout victories over Curtis Blaydes, Junior dos Santos and AKA teammate Cain Velasquez.
“I think he is a great guy,” Cormier said of Ngannou in a recent interview with TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter. “I like Francis, he is very respectful. But, I think everybody now is… I think everybody now has to take a step back. Because nothing’s changed. This is the same thing that we saw prior to his title fight. Just remember that.”
Daniel Cormier on Francis Ngannou: “Everyone needs to take a step back because nothing’s changed.”
Full interview: https://t.co/pLHbyDCTKP pic.twitter.com/RObRvWKSXz
— Aaron Bronsteter (@aaronbronsteter) July 6, 2019
”You guys have to slow down. You get excited and fall in love with these knockouts. But nothing has changed. He did that to Overeem to earn a title fight. He knocked out all those guys prior. Nothing has changed. As much as I respect him, it is not a fight I would have much hesitation in taking.”
Ngannou is currently without an opponent, but the 32-year-old could go on to face the winner of the upcoming rematch between Cormier and Miocic at UFC 241. The pay-per-view extravaganza takes place next month, August 17 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.