Stipe Miocic has a lot to think about in the hours leading up to his massive fight against Francis Ngannou tomorrow night, but his doubters aren’t among his list of thoughts. Stipe Miocic is used to winning; yet paradoxically, he’s also become used to …
Stipe Miocic has a lot to think about in the hours leading up to his massive fight against Francis Ngannou tomorrow night, but his doubters aren’t among his list of thoughts. Stipe Miocic is used to winning; yet paradoxically, he’s also become used to being the underdog. As it happens, Miocic has become most accustomed […]
Francis Ngannou believes he has put in the work to ensure the outcome will be different in his rematch with Stipe Miocic. Ngannou and Miocic first clashed at UFC 220 in January 2018. Going into the fight, Ngannou had torn through the heavyweight division, picking up six straight stoppages without seeing the third round. However, […]
Francis Ngannou believes he has put in the work to ensure the outcome will be different in his rematch with Stipe Miocic.
Ngannou and Miocic first clashed at UFC 220 in January 2018. Going into the fight, Ngannou had torn through the heavyweight division, picking up six straight stoppages without seeing the third round. However, all that momentum came to a screeching halt when he was forced to spend almost the entirety of the title fight underneath Miocic, eating shots on the way to a clear decision loss.
During the UFC 260 pre-fight press conference, Ngannou gave Miocic his due credit, but said it’s hard for him to even watch that performance back (H/T MMA Fighting).
“Obviously, I’m not taking credit off Stipe, he was the better fighter that night, but when I look at that fight, I don’t recognize myself,” Ngannou said. “Even the way that I’m fighting, the way that I’m rushing, that guy looked like me, but I don’t recognize that style.
“Also, I did a lot of mistakes leading up to that fight. I wasn’t even there myself. I didn’t even have emotion in that fight. I don’t know. I was just there, [a] lack of emotion. This time things will be different. I had enough time, me and my team we put everything right, and I think it’s going to be right.”
After following the Miocic loss with an extremely lackluster performance against Derrick Lewis, Ngannou made the shift to start working with the coaches at Xtreme Couture full-time. The move has paid dividends, as Ngannou has since knocked out his last four opponents in less than three minutes combined. On top of that, Ngannou believes they have addressed the holes in his games, most notably his takedown defense and cardio.
“There’s difference in all of the aspects,” Ngannou said about his improvements. “I remember leading up to that fight, I was thinking about how it feels to fight a [five]-round fight. I had a lot of questions unanswered. I didn’t have any experience on that. Even if I lost that night, I came back, there was a part of me who wasn’t happy but satisfied for the fact that I can do it. If I make it right, I can get there.
“I don’t have that concern anymore. I had a better preparation this time and I have that experience. I put some good work on my wrestling, jiu-jitsu, even striking so I think skill wise, I have improved a lot and I still have a lot of places to move in this sport. I may be 34 years old, but I believe that I’m very young in this sport and I have a lot of places to grow.”
Thanks to the improvements he’s made, the narrative heading into the Miocic rematch remains the same as it was before their first meeting over three years ago: Francis Ngannou is an unstoppable force destined to rule over the division for years to come. In fact, people seem so sure of an Ngannou victory that they’re already arguing over what his next fight will be. Will Miocic be given a chance to complete the trilogy? Or will Jon Jones get an immediate title shot in his new division? Even UFC president Dana White doesn’t seem to have an answer.
“We’ll see what happens,” White said. “We’ll see how this thing plays out. It would be tough to say no, [Stipe Miocic] doesn’t deserve the rematch. Of course [he deserves it]. Yeah, I don’t know.”
Who do you think wins the Francis Ngannou-Stipe Miocic rematch? Let us know!
Tomorrow night at UFC 260, undisputed heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic will defend his title against Francis Ngannou in one of the most anticipated heavyweight fights of all time. Also in action will be former welterweight champion Tyron Woodley taking o…
Tomorrow night at UFC 260, undisputed heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic will defend his title against Francis Ngannou in one of the most anticipated heavyweight fights of all time. Also in action will be former welterweight champion Tyron Woodley taking on Vicente Luque in the co-main event and the new season of “The Suga Show” kicking […]
Stephen Thompson is edging towards Vicente Luque over Tyron Woodley. Woodley takes on Luque in the co-main event of the UFC 260 pay-per-view event taking place Saturday night at the Apex facility in Las Vegas. For Woodley, it’s a chance to end a three-fight losing skid against one of the most exciting welterweights in the […]
Stephen Thompson is edging towards Vicente Luque over Tyron Woodley.
Woodley takes on Luque in the co-main event of the UFC 260 pay-per-view event taking place Saturday night at the Apex facility in Las Vegas.
For Woodley, it’s a chance to end a three-fight losing skid against one of the most exciting welterweights in the world. For Luque, it’s a chance to get the biggest win of his career and further climb up the 170-pound ranks.
Thompson has notably faced both fighters so it’s all the more interesting to see how he thinks the fight will pan out. With that said, he expects Luque to come out on top and explained why in a recent video.
“I like Tyron [Woodley], I like Vicente Luque. [I’ve] faced both of these guys.” Thompson said (via Middle Easy). “I fought Tyron in a different mindset in his heyday. I was his first title defense. I don’t feel like his mindset isn’t there like it used to be. He doesn’t have that fire anymore.
“So, I’m kind of leaning towards Vicente Luque. He’s very tough, he’s very young, he’s got that fire. He wants to go out there and win the title. He’s been wrecking dudes. I was his last loss and has had two fights since and dominated his opponents. So, I’m really excited to see that fight.”
It’s easy to forget Woodley was the welterweight champion just over two years ago. However, he has since dropped three in a row and has lost his last 14 rounds of action.
Not many are pinning their hopes on a win for Woodley this weekend either. All Thompson can do is hope he comes out with a different mindset.
“I hope Tyron comes out with a different mindset and ready to rock and roll,” Thompson added. “That would just make out to be a great fight. But I’m kind of leaning towards Vicente Luque on that one.”
Francis Ngannou’s head coach is confident in Ngannou’s wrestling ahead of his long-awaited rematch against Stipe Miocic this Saturday. Francis Ngannou has been known almost exclusively as a knockout artist throughout his UFC career. In fact, he h…
Francis Ngannou’s head coach is confident in Ngannou’s wrestling ahead of his long-awaited rematch against Stipe Miocic this Saturday. Francis Ngannou has been known almost exclusively as a knockout artist throughout his UFC career. In fact, he has been so dominant in the task of knocking people out that many people assume that he has […]
Francis Ngannou will be ready for the wrestling of Stipe Miocic. Ngannou takes on Miocic in a heavyweight title rematch in the UFC 260 headliner this weekend. Their first meeting, of course, took place at UFC 220 in January 2018 in a contest that saw Miocic weather the early storm before going on to dominate […]
Francis Ngannou will be ready for the wrestling of Stipe Miocic.
Ngannou takes on Miocic in a heavyweight title rematch in the UFC 260 headliner this weekend. Their first meeting, of course, took place at UFC 220 in January 2018 in a contest that saw Miocic weather the early storm before going on to dominate Ngannou with his wrestling.
Ngannou was not only gassed, but clueless on the ground for majority of the fight as he went on to lose a lopsided decision. He has since bounced back as he is currently on a four-fight winning streak.
And while he is yet to show his grappling game since, he has been working extensively on his wrestling according to Xtreme Couture head coach Erick Nicksick.
“We had to implement [wrestling] in every practice that we do,” Nicksick told MMA Fighting’s Damon Martin. “So it’s not like one practice you’re sparring or hitting pads. It’s MMA. So every practice you have to focus on defending a takedown. Furthermore, you have to focus on taking guys down yourself. You have to have offensive wrestling just as important as your defensive wrestling.
“Those are some of the things, as scary as it sounds, this dude is blowing through guys on takedowns, putting guys on their backs and beating them up from the top. This guy is now enjoying the elements of wrestling offensively and defensively and understanding there is another path he can find a victory and not shy away from wrestling. You need to implement it one way or another.”
Of course, we’ll only know for sure when the fight actually takes place. That said, Nicksick is excited to see his pupil implement his new skills against Miocic.
“We can talk about it we’re blue in the face but you have to prove it,” he added. “You have to show people. Everybody is going to have their doubts until you’re able to implement it.”
Do you think Ngannou will more prepared for Miocic’s wrestling this time?
Francis Ngannou believes he has put in the work to ensure the outcome will be different in his rematch with Stipe Miocic. Ngannou and Miocic first clashed at UFC 220 in January 2018. Going into the fight, Ngannou had torn through the heavyweight division, picking up six straight stoppages without seeing the third round. However, […]
Stephen Thompson is edging towards Vicente Luque over Tyron Woodley. Woodley takes on Luque in the co-main event of the UFC 260 pay-per-view event taking place Saturday night at the Apex facility in Las Vegas. For Woodley, it’s a chance to end a three-fight losing skid against one of the most exciting welterweights in the […]
Francis Ngannou will be ready for the wrestling of Stipe Miocic. Ngannou takes on Miocic in a heavyweight title rematch in the UFC 260 headliner this weekend. Their first meeting, of course, took place at UFC 220 in January 2018 in a contest that saw Miocic weather the early storm before going on to dominate […]