Francis Ngannou not impressed with Stipe Miocic, says Cain Velasquez is still best heavyweight in UFC

Stipe Miocic held on to his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight title this past weekend (Sat., May 13, 2017) by knocking out Junior dos Santos in the very first round at UFC 211 in Dallas, Texas (video highlights here).

It was the latest impressive performance on behalf of the champ, who scored his fourth straight first-round knockout win. But, not everyone was head over heels with Miocic’s victory, as Francis Ngannou says he needs to see a bit more from Miocic before he starts singing his praises.

In fact, during his recent appearance on The MMA Hour, Ngannou says though Stipe is holding the belt, he is not the best 265-pound fighter on the UFC roster.

“It was a good performance, but I was not impressed. I think I need more than that. I am not impressed with him,” said Ngannou. “I am impressed with someone like Velasquez. I think he is the best heavyweight we have, and that’s why I want to fight him.”

Tough crowd.

That said, Francis is more than confident he can wipe Miocic out, and says if given the opportunity to go straight into a championship bout he wouldn’t pass it up. But, he isn’t opposed to taking on and defeating Cain first to get there.

“Yes, that’s true, you got it. That is one of the reasons I moved to Vegas, because right now I am ready for all challenges. I am No. 5 ranked. I will fight everyone right now. I already called out Velasquez, but he says he’s injured. But, I would like to fight him and then get a title shot.”

Cain is still on the mend after undergoing a back procedure last December, so there is no telling when the former Heavyweight king plans on returning. As for when Francis intends to get back into the swing of things, he’s eyeing a comeback fight in July or August.

Since it’s highly unlikely Miocic will want such a quick turnaround and with Cain missing in action, anyone care to offer up another potential challenge for “The Predator?”

Stipe Miocic held on to his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight title this past weekend (Sat., May 13, 2017) by knocking out Junior dos Santos in the very first round at UFC 211 in Dallas, Texas (video highlights here).

It was the latest impressive performance on behalf of the champ, who scored his fourth straight first-round knockout win. But, not everyone was head over heels with Miocic’s victory, as Francis Ngannou says he needs to see a bit more from Miocic before he starts singing his praises.

In fact, during his recent appearance on The MMA Hour, Ngannou says though Stipe is holding the belt, he is not the best 265-pound fighter on the UFC roster.

“It was a good performance, but I was not impressed. I think I need more than that. I am not impressed with him,” said Ngannou. “I am impressed with someone like Velasquez. I think he is the best heavyweight we have, and that’s why I want to fight him.”

Tough crowd.

That said, Francis is more than confident he can wipe Miocic out, and says if given the opportunity to go straight into a championship bout he wouldn’t pass it up. But, he isn’t opposed to taking on and defeating Cain first to get there.

“Yes, that’s true, you got it. That is one of the reasons I moved to Vegas, because right now I am ready for all challenges. I am No. 5 ranked. I will fight everyone right now. I already called out Velasquez, but he says he’s injured. But, I would like to fight him and then get a title shot.”

Cain is still on the mend after undergoing a back procedure last December, so there is no telling when the former Heavyweight king plans on returning. As for when Francis intends to get back into the swing of things, he’s eyeing a comeback fight in July or August.

Since it’s highly unlikely Miocic will want such a quick turnaround and with Cain missing in action, anyone care to offer up another potential challenge for “The Predator?”