Stipe Miocic

UFC has a target date for Miocic – Ngannou 2 per Dana White

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MMA, Stipe Miocic

One of the more anticipated UFC title fights that has yet to be booked is the rematch between Stipe Miocic (20-3) and Francis Ngannou (15-3). The two men last fought back in January of 2018 at UFC 220 where Miocic dominated the top contender.

However, since that fight, Ngannou has turned into an even more terrifying monster. He had a bump in the road against Derrick Lewis where he couldn’t pull the trigger, but outside of that, he’s been a destroyer in the heavyweight division.

In Ngannou’s last four UFC contests, none of seen more than one minute and eleven seconds of action. Curtis Blaydes, Cain Velasquez, Junior Dos Santos, and Jairzinho Rozenstruik have all been knocked out by Ngannou in a combined 2:42.

Miocic on the other hand has spent the last two years in a trilogy with Daniel Cormier. Back at UFC 252, Miocic put the finishing touches on the trilogy with a unanimous decision victory over Cormier. However, he didn’t come through the fight without injury.

According to Dana White in an interview with TMZ, the UFC‘s heavyweight champion needed time to recover. However, the UFC does have a date planned for the rematch. According to White the rematch between the two will take place in March.

UFC’s March Heavyweight Title Fight

This seems to go right along with the timeframe that Ngannou referenced last week when he discussed his frustrations. The trilogy between Miocic and Cormier tied up the heavyweight title for the last couple of years which has been frustrating for Ngannou.

When these two men fight again, I think we are going to see a much different fight than we saw at UFC 220. Miocic really humbled Ngannou that night. Francis made that walk thinking he was indestructible, and Miocic made him feel very human.

However, Ngannou is a completely different fighter than he was then. I think he’s at his absolute best now, and I don’t know if Miocic is. I think the challenger will likely be the favorite when these two stand across from each other next March.

UFC: Francis Ngannou growing frustrated with another lengthy layoff

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Francis Ngannou

Back in May, Francis Ngannou (15-3) made a massive statement at UFC 249. Taking on the undefeated Jairzinho Rozenstruik, Ngannou won by knockout in a mere 20 seconds to solidify is top contender status in the heavyweight division.

For Ngannou, it was his fourth straight victory. Not just that, it was his forth straight first round knockout none of which have gone more than 71 seconds. Simply put, Ngannou is the most terrifying force in the UFC right now.

However, he hasn’t been able to get back in the cage since then. Ngannou tried to lobby for a fight with the UFC‘s pound for pound best, Jon Jones, however, that fight fell apart due to financial negotiations between Jones and the UFC. 

UFC 252 rolled around in August and Stipe Miocic defeated Daniel Cormier to retain his heavyweight title. However, Miocic is said to be out until March of next year with some injuries that he sustained the matchup against Cormier. This isn’t sitting well with the top contender.

The UFC’s heavyweight issue

The UFC has a problem on their hands in the heavyweight division. It all stems back to when Daniel Cormier won the heavyweight title. After Cormier won, it appeared that the UFC would make Cormier fight Brock Lesnar in a super fight for the heavyweight title.

However, that fight never materialized. Then a year after Cormier fought Miocic the first time, the two rematched where Miocic retained the title. Due to injuries in the rematch, it took another year for the trilogy fight to happen at UFC 252.

While all of this was going on, Ngannou was running through contenders like Cain Velasquez, Curtis Blaydes, Junior Dos Santos, and Jairzinho Rozenstruik. Ngannou pointed out that he’s only fought for 20 seconds in the last 16 months.

The UFC needs to get the heavyweight division moving again. If Miocic can’t go in March, I think the UFC needs to create an interim title and let Ngannou face either the winner of the Lewis – Blaydes fight or perhaps they can make the Jon Jones fight happen.

 

What should happen with the UFC 256 main event?

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UFC, Dana White

Yesterday, news broke that the welterweight title fight between Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns at UFC 256 was off. That title fight was set to be the main event for the promotions December PPV event scheduled for December 12th.

Amanda Nunes – Megan Anderson for the UFC‘s featherweight title remains on that card. However, I don’t think it’s likely that the UFC moves forward with Nunes – Anderson as the main event of that PPV. I think they have higher profile fights in mind.

ESPN reported yesterday that the UFC was considering a number of options. One option they were considering was Stipe Miocic – Francis Ngannou 2 for the heavyweight title. Another option the UFC was looking at was having Jorge Masvidal – Colby Covington headline that card.

Both of these fights are fantastic options. However, it appears that the UFC heavyweight title fight will not happen until 2021 as of now. Masvidal – Covington is a very real possibility as the UFC has been working hard to book that fight.

What should the UFC do?

While both of these options are great, I think there is a clear path for the promotion. That path would have UFC 256 headlined by the rematch between Conor McGregor (22-4) and Dustin Poirier (26-6, 1 NC). Both men have recently agreed to a charity MMA match.

That charity MMA match was set to be on 12/12 which is the same date as UFC 256. McGregor obviously suggested that date to stick it to the promotion after the recent public back and forth. Poirier agreed to the date for the charity match.

Conor McGregor belongs in the UFC. Despite everything, he’s still the cash cow for the promotion. The UFC is booming and they’ve proved they don’t need McGregor, but if you can get him back in the octagon, you need to do it.

Not only would this be a fun fight for fans, but it would be the right fight for the division. Both men are near the top of the lightweight division, and whoever wins would have a real claim to be the number one contender to whoever wins at UFC 254.

Poirier was originally supposed to fight Tony Ferguson. However, that fight fell apart due to financial negotiations. I don’t see financial reasons being what stops this fight from happening. For the hell of it, why not put Tony Ferguson – Michael Chandler on the same card at UFC 256? This is the path I would go down if I was the UFC.

UFC: Francis Ngannou working with Teddy Atlas

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Francis Ngannou

The most terrifying heavyweight in the UFC is working on tightening up his boxing skills. Top ranked contender, Francis Ngannou (15-3), has been working extremely hard to tighten things up for another run at the UFC heavyweight title.

Ngannou fought for the heavyweight title back at UFC 220. Ngannou came into that fight with Stipe Miocic (20-3) as a big favorite despite being the challenger. The Predator also came into that fight a little over-confident in his abilities.

Despite landing some good shots in the first round, it was a one-sided beating handed out by Stipe Miocic. After that loss, a gun shy and less confident Ngannou also lost to Derrick Lewis. Ngannou looked to be lost in his UFC career.

That’s when he took on Curtis Blaydes back in November of 2018. Ngannou stormed through Blaydes in just 45 seconds. He would then go on to knockout Cain Velasquez, Junior Dos Santos, and Jairzinho Rozenstruik all in a combined one minute and 57 seconds.

Despite this impressive run, Ngannou still realizes that there is room for improvement. While his power is unquestionable, his technique has a lot of flaws. This is something he’s working very hard to address. He was recently seen training with Hall of Fame boxing trainer Teddy Atlas.

Future UFC champion?

The Predator is absolutely horrifying. However, if he improves his technique to go with his raw power, the UFC‘s heavyweight division is in a world of trouble. Even as is, many believe that Ngannou would be a favorite over Miocic despite the way the first fight went.

Miocic retained his heavyweight title back at UFC 252. He didn’t seem too interested in facing Ngannou in a rematch considering it was way more risk than reward. However, Dana White has continued to say that Francis Ngannou will get the next UFC title shot.

Jon Jones of course is preparing for a move to the heavyweight division. That could always throw a wrinkle into things, but I still believe the promotion will book the rematch between Ngannou and Miocic.

Daniel Cormier suffered from COVID-19 in camp ahead of UFC 252

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Daniel Cormier

It has been exactly one month since we saw UFC 252. That night, Stipe Miocic (20-3) solidified himself as the greatest heavyweight in the promotion’s history with a second win over Daniel Cormier (22-3, 1 NC). DC announced his retirement after the fight.

A lot of people questioned DC’s sluggish performance at UFC 252. There were rumors that he had not been healthy during the camp which didn’t allow him to train at his optimum levels. Luke Rockhold hinted at this in a recent interview with Brendan Schaub.

Earlier this morning, we found out what exactly happened to Cormier in his camp. In an interview with Yahoo Sports’ Kevin Iole, Cormier said that he tested positive for COVID-19. He came down with it after a teammate tested positive at AKA.

Did it impact UFC 252?

Cormier detailed what had happened telling Iole over the fourth of July weekend leading up to UFC 252. “Over the weekend, I started feeling a little sick. I got tired and peaked. On Monday night/Tuesday morning, I wasn’t feeling so good. My resting heart rate had been 50 beats a minute. Now it was at 57,” Cormier said.

The former UFC double champ went on to say that his resting heart rate got up to 67. After continuously not feeling good and feeling sluggish, Cormier went to the doctor where he found out that he had COVID-19. It obviously had been impacting his training camp.

DC was quick to say that COVID-19 is not an excuse for losing at UFC 252. “This is not an excuse at all. Miocic won the fight and he fought beautifully,” Cormier told Iole. This all came out as the UFC announced a partnership with Oura Health. The Oura Smart Ring helped Cormier diagnose his issues.

It’s clear that Cormier wasn’t at his best at UFC 252. Does all the credit go to Stipe’s performance or do we sit and wonder on how COVID impacted DC’s performance. Fighter’s deal with things all the time that never make it out to the public.

I will say that I don’t believe Cormier said this to downplay the UFC heavyweight champions performance a month ago. I think he announced it to help the UFC show off their new partnership with Oura. Still, one has to wonder now how COVID-19 impacted UFC 252.

UFC: Dana White is interested in booking Brock Lesnar – Jon Jones

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The combat sports world has been buzzing over the past few days after learning that former UFC heavyweight champion, Brock Lesnar (5-3, 1 NC), was a free agent. Lesnar’s merchandise was pulled off the WWE website, and it’s been reported that they couldn’t come to terms on a new deal.

Of course, many quickly pointed out a potential MMA return for Lesnar. Scott Coker of Bellator pointed out potentially matching him with Fedor Emelianenko. However, I believe he still has an active UFC contract. At least, Dana White said that a couple of years ago.

Lesnar was going to return to the UFC to fight Daniel Cormier after Cormier won the heavyweight title from Stipe Miocic at UFC 226. Lesnar even entered the USADA testing pool. That fight never came together, and Lesnar stayed with the WWE. Now, White seems to be interested in Lesnar fighting another top UFC star.

Lesnar – Jones in the UFC?

If Brock Lesnar is actually interested in fighting again, Jon Jones (26-1, 1 NC) is the only fight that makes real sense. I don’t see Lesnar at 43 years old coming back for a title run. He might just want to come back for one big show that’ll generate a massive payday for him.

Jon Jones is stuck right now. He’s moving up to heavyweight, but he’s not the first in line for the title. The UFC has stated over and over that Francis Ngannou (15-3) will be getting the next crack at Stipe Miocic. So until that fight, Jones will wait on the sidelines.

Nobody wants to see Jones fight a contender like Curtis Blaydes or Derrick Lewis. They want to see him fight for the title or fight someone extremely entertaining. That’s where Brock Lesnar enters the UFC‘s train of thought.

Jones has expressed interest in fighting Lesnar in the past. Lesnar always told Jones to be careful what he wished for. A Jones – Lesnar fight is really a win-win situation for the UFC. It’s not really a massive risk for Jones in fighting a 43 year old Lesnar, and it would be a big payday. As White pointed out, it would be a good introduction to heavyweight for Jones.

I’m not convinced that this fight will actually happen, but it is one that would make sense in a weird way. While it’s not the fight it once would have been, I’m all in for seeing Jon Jones fight Brock Lesnar in the UFC.

Former UFC champ Daniel Cormier on retirement: “Yeah, I’m not going to fight anymore”

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Daniel Cormier

Daniel Cormier (22-3, 1 NC) made it clear leading up to UFC 252 that he would be walking away following his fight with Stipe Miocic (19-3). Cormier went on to lose a unanimous decision to Miocic back on August 15th.

The former two division UFC champion told Joe Rogan in a post-fight interview that he would only fight again if it was for championships. That of course seemingly cracked the door on a potential return for Cormier.

Today, Cormier returned to his ESPN show with Ariel Helwani. Helwani simply asked the former UFC champion if he was done. Cormier replied with, “Yeah, I’m not going to fight anymore.”

Future UFC Hall of Famer

Cormier continued, “I told Joe Rogan after the fight that I was only interested in fighting for championships…I’ve lost two fights in a row for the first time in my career. You have to understand when it’s time.”

DC went on to talk about the fact that he might have been hit with the right hand by Miocic at UFC 252 that dropped him in the second round was, “Because I’m older.” Cormier will be turning 42 years old next March.

Initially, Cormier didn’t want to fight in the UFC past his 40th birthday. Of course, the potential fight with Brock Lesnar kept him going. The fight never materialized and Cormier agreed to giving Miocic a rematch after DC won the belt from him at UFC 226.

When DC was finished by Miocic, he said that he couldn’t walk away after that performance. He waited for Miocic to heal up and the two rematched at UFC 252. Losing twice left Cormier no where to go and at 41 years old, he acknowledged that it’s time to move on with his life.

Daniel Cormier’s Legacy

DC is truly one of the best fighters to ever do it. Unfortunately for him, he fought as the same time as Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic. Those two men had Cormier’s number when no one else could solve his puzzle. Cormier will no doubt go into the Hall of Fame as a former two division UFC world champion.

I do feel bad for Daniel Cormier. There people who do not put a ton of stock in his UFC light heavyweight title run since he never defeated Jon Jones. There are also now people questioning his first win against Stipe having lost twice to Miocic. People have said the shot might have been pure luck.

At the end of the day, Cormier won the heavyweight title clean. When Jones was out, he beat every man at light heavyweight to capture the title. While pundits can always talk, there is no questioning the legacy that Daniel Cormier will leave inside the octagon.

UFC: Stipe Miocic isn’t interested in a rematch with Francis Ngannou

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MMA, Stipe Miocic

Following UFC 252, it seemed like there was a pretty clear plan for the heavyweight division. Stipe Miocic (20-3) defeated Daniel Cormier to cement his legacy as the best heavyweight in UFC history.

After defeating DC for the second time, it seemed like there was a clear next challenger. Francis Ngannou (15-3) has knocked out four consecutive opponents in 2:42 total to earn a rematch with the champion, Miocic.

UFC President Dana White made it clear that Ngannou was next for Stipe. Many wondered if Jon Jones (26-1, 1 NC) would jump ahead of Francis with his move to heavyweight. White made it clear that Ngannou would be next. However, the champion doesn’t seem interested.

Stipe wants something different

In a Q&A on Instagram, Miocic stated, “Francis isn’t exciting to me. Already put on a 25 minute clinic on how to beat him. Want a new challenge!” The UFC champion is clearly wanting something other than the Ngannou rematch right now.

Ngannou deserves a shot, but Miocic does have a point. Their first fight was not close. What does Miocic really have to gain from fighting Ngannou again? That fight is way more risk than reward for the champion.

The UFC could find themselves in a pickle over this situation. What do you do if the most decorated champion in heavyweight history turns down the number one contender? The answer is actually pretty simple.

Yes, White has emphatically stated multiple times that Jon Jones will not jump the line in front of Ngannou. White did say Jones would get an immediate title shot, but Ngannou would get his first. However, Miocic might be able to force the issue with his statements.

The UFC’s dilemma

The UFC is in a unique spot, but it’s not a spot they hadn’t been in before. When Khabib Nurmagomedov was clearly deserving of the lightweight title shot a few years back, the promotion gave the shot to then featherweight champion, Conor McGregor, who wanted to move up.

I could see a similar scenario playing out here with the UFC heavyweight title. While Ngannou should get the next shot, I could see the promotion shifting to the greatest of all time facing the greatest heavyweight of all time.

Making that fight would not be fair to Francis, but it would get Stipe excited, and the fight would be a huge legacy fight. Will be interesting to see what the UFC decides to do.

UFC: Derrick Lewis – Curtis Blaydes to headline Fight Night on November 28th

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The UFC is finalizing a very important fight for the heavyweight division for November. Per Brett Okamoto, “The Black Beast” Derrick Lewis (24-7, 1 NC) will be taking on Curtis “Razor” Blaydes (14-2, 1 NC) on November 28th.

UFC Title Eliminator?

The fight between Blaydes and Lewis pairs together the UFC‘s second and fourth ranked contenders at heavyweight. UFC 252 saw Stipe Miocic retain his title, and now the dominoes in the division are starting to fall into place.

Derrick Lewis just became the heavyweight knockout king at UFC Vegas 6 with his stoppage over Alexey Oleynik. Lewis came out like a bat out of hell in the second round to stop Oleynik in 21 seconds.

The win was Lewis’ third straight win. Lewis also has wins over Ilir Latifi and Blagoy Ivanov in this winning streak. Lewis is one of the more popular fighters in the UFC, and you can bet fans are hoping he gets another crack at UFC gold one day.

A big road block stands in his way in Curtis Blaydes. Blaydes is coming off of a decision win over Alexander Volkov back in June at UFC on ESPN 11. It wasn’t the prettiest performance, but Blaydes got the job done.

The win was the fourth in a row for Blaydes. Since his UFC debut back in 2016, the only man to defeat Blaydes inside the octagon is current top contender, Francis Ngannou. Ngannou has stopped Blaydes twice.

The fight between Lewis and Blaydes will likely determine who will get a title shot in early 2021. It’s clear that Ngannou will get the next shot unless the UFC pivots to Jon Jones. Either way, the Lewis – Blaydes fight has massive title picture implications.

Pride’s Fedor Emelianenko vs UFC’s Stipe Miocic; who wins in their prime?

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Fedor Emelianenko

At UFC 252, Stipe Miocic cemented his legacy as the greatest heavyweight in the promotion’s history. I think the last part of that sentence is truly important. The promotion’s history.

However, is Stipe the greatest heavyweight of all time? If everyone faced each other in their prime, would Stipe Miocic come out on top? I started thinking about the other man who’s widely considered one of that GOAT’s, Fedor Emelianenko.

I’m not referring to the Fedor that has fought in the US over the last ten years. I’m talking about the Fedor that put together a 30-1, 1 NC record in Japan fighting the best heavyweights of the time. Guys like Big Nog, Mirko Cro Cop, Mark Coleman, etc.

I started thinking about what would happen if the UFC‘s current heavyweight champion, Miocic, fought the greatest heavyweight in the history of Pride, Fedor, when they both were in their prime. Who would walk out with their hand raised?

UFC vs Pride

This is a fun debate, but the one thing you cannot deny is that these two men are the greatest heavyweights in Pride and UFC history. Fedor stands alone in Pride while Stipe stands alone in the UFC.

In breaking down a potential fight between the two, you have to look at the totality of their careers and skill sets. I’m going to be frank, if you didn’t witness Fedor in his prime, I truly feel sorry for you. You need to go watch old fights to educate yourself on just how good he was.

Fedor was incredibly innovative for his time. Dynamic on the feet, incredibly explosive, and arguably had the quickest hips on the ground out of any heavyweight I’ve ever seen. On top of that, he could take a punch and just keep coming.

The one big down side for Fedor was his size. If he would have been on a UFC PI nutritional plan, he could have easily been a light heavyweight or even a middleweight. At the same time, that’s what makes his accomplishments even more impressive.

Stipe Miocic has blown me away in his career. The man never struck me as the fastest guy or the most powerful guy, but he just knew how to get it done. Has a very good chin, but was finished twice including once by Stefan Struve.

However, Miocic just has this toughness to him. The guy has incredibly clean boxing technique with solid grappling. The two time UFC heavyweight champion has successfully defended the title four times which is a UFC record.

Miocic holds wins over all the top UFC heavyweights of this era minus Cain Velasquez. His hit list includes Daniel Cormier (Twice), Francis Ngannou, Junior Dos Santos, Alistair Overeem, and Fabricio Werdum.

As the sport has evolved, the competition has arguably gotten much steeper in the heavyweight division, and Stipe has stood alone. A few losses, but when it counts, he’s at his best.

So who wins?

This is such a tough call for me. If you told me that Pride’s Fedor fought the UFC‘s Stipe ten times, I might say that it would be 5-5. On the feet, technique wise, Stipe has the advantage. However, Fedor was drastically faster with his hand speed.

Factoring all grappling aspects into the game from wrestling to jiu jitsu, I would give the slight advantage to Fedor. Although, Stipe’s size advantage could play a big role in the grappling exchanges particularly against the fence.

In the end, if I had a gun to my head, I would lean towards Fedor Emelianenko in his prime. That is not to disrespect the accomplishments that Stipe Miocic has or to discredit the UFC champ, but I truly believe there was something special about a prime Fedor.

If one of the two men were to secure a finish, I believe that Fedor would be able to catch Stipe. Stipe has shown that he doesn’t have the cleanest defense in the world, and I think that Fedor’s speed and power would give him issues.

So if you ask me, I’m going with Fedor. It’s a fun debate, but I still believe the Pride Fedor is the greatest heavyweight I’ve ever seen.