Las Vegas
The Francis Ngannou Era has begun, and it’s no shock what got it underway. Ngannou’s incredible punching power put an end to the reign of the greatest heavyweight in UFC history in emphatic fashion.
He landed a massive left hand early in the second round that dropped Miocic. Miocic was badly hurt, struggled to his feet and was wobbling around.
Ngannou dropped him again and then finished the fight with a devastating, scary and unbelievable powerfist from the top.
Miocic was out and Ngannou became the new heavyweight champion at 52 seconds of the second round Saturday in the main event of UFC 260 at Apex.
It was a rematch of a one-sided Miocic win at UFC 220 in Boston in 2018, when Miocic effectively neutralized Ngannou’s power.
It was a different story this time around, though, as a more seasoned and in-shape Ngannou calmly stalked Miocic from the opening bell.
Ngannou’s best strikes in the first round were a series of ground shots that got Miocic’s attention, but he didn’t land the kind of blow that’s caused many to believe he’s the hardest-hitter in MMA history.
That changed in the second. Miocic was trying to fight from a distance and keep Ngannou away. But Ngannou, who closed as a -145 favorite at BetMGM, would not be denied.
He showed the added dimension to his game by not rushing or overextending himself, thereby putting himself into position to be taken down.
When he didn’t do that, Miocic suddenly had another, bigger problem to solve.—AFP
