Without a doubt, Francis Ngannou is the next title contender to fight against Stipe Miocic. He basically cleared out the top 5 heavyweights and has no opponents left. Ngannou was supposed to fight for the belt earlier had not the trilogy fight of DC and Miocic.
Francis Ngannou has finished all his opponents in under one round. He has beaten Curtis Blaydes twice, Cain Velasquez, Junior Dos Santos, and Jarzinho Rozenstruik. He literally ran out of opponents to fight.
Stipe Miocic still needs recovery from his third match against Daniel Cormier. It was a brutal back and forth that needs recovery time for both fighters.
Stipe Miocic is the most accomplished heavyweight champion in the UFC. Most consecutive defenses and two-time champions are what separates him from other previous champions.
During the first Miocic vs Ngannou fight, it was a dominating fight for the champion. He won all 5 rounds on the scorecard. Ngannou had his moments in the first round due to the fear of getting clipped but Miocic fought smart.
Miocic used his wrestling and weaving to neutralize Ngannou’s power. Ngannou had no answer to Stipe’s gameplan.
After the fight, Ngannou was interviewed and said that he lost because he underestimated the Champion. Dana White agreed because Ngannou did not take his training seriously.
Coming to the rematch, we still don’t know if Ngannou improved his game because his fights end so quickly. The longest fight was against Junior Dos Santos and it was only a little more than a minute. All other fights ended in under a minute.
Meanwhile, Stipe Miocic was due to defend his title against Daniel Cormier for the first time. Miocic was knocked out flush and everyone was surprised since he took Ngannou’s bombs while Cormier was not known to be a power puncher.
There was a slight delay in the division because Cormier did not want to give Miocic a rematch at first. Cormier called out Brock Lesnar due to the money and attention the fans gave.
The Brock Lesnar fight did not happen as Lesnar decided to say in the WWE. There was a short notice fight for UFC 230 because it needed a main event. Daniel Cormier stepped up but refuses to fight Miocic, so the UFC gave Derrick Lewis.
Derrick Lewis although the number 2 heavyweight contender, was not deserving of the title shot since his last performances were not impressive. Cormier just took him down and submitted him with ease.
Cormier then had no choice but to grant Miocic the rematch. The fight in the early rounds was all DC until the fourth round. Miocic changed his gameplan and went to the body. The body shots Miocic landed were brutal that led to the knockout.
After Miocic’s win, DC called out for the third match since he gave him a chance to have a rematch, it was time to give him one as well. There was a slight delay again as Miocic recovered from his eye injuries from the eye pokes.
The third match secured that Miocic is the better fighter and the heavyweight champion as he won via decision. Meanwhile, Ngannou had to fight lower-ranked fighters just to make money and have fights.
Ngannou was already title shot worthy after he beat Junior Dos Santos but due to waiting impatiently. He fought Jairzinho Rozenstruik who was ranked lower than him. The fight ended in 20 seconds.
Ngannou’s power is just ridiculous but Miocic has proven he can take the punches. Ngannou has added weapons in his game with leg kicks. It could be a deciding factor for the rematch against Miocic.
Whatever happens, Miocic vs Ngannou 2 is the fight to make and fans are excited about it. Dana White said that the projected date is around March but no official announcement yet.