Stipe Miocic Feels Francis Ngannou is Underestimating Him Ahead of UFC 220

For all the chatter about Francis Ngannou’s incredible knockout power and jaw-dropping finishes, he’s about to face off with the toughest test of his career in UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic.

Miocic has five straight victories — all by knockout or TKO — with four of them in the first round. In those five wins, Miocic has taken out three former UFC champions as well as a K-1 kickboxing legend in Mark Hunt.

Add to that, Miocic may best be known for his knockout power but he also comes from a wrestling background having competed on the Division I level while at Cleveland State before spending years as a Golden Gloves boxer to hone his hands before getting into mixed martial arts.

Despite all those skills and accolades, Miocic feels like Ngannou is approaching their fight this weekend as if he’s already won and now he’s just waiting for the belt to be wrapped around his waist.

“I hope he doesn’t take me lightly but I feel like he is,” Miocic said ahead of UFC 220. “Let him think that way. It’s a terrible time to find out in the middle of the fight that he can’t do what he wants.”

In the interview, Miocic admits that ultimately he has more ways to win this fight than Ngannou and that gives him every advantage going into Saturday night.

Whether that means out wrestling Ngannou or just out striking him, Miocic is confident that he can pick his shots and do whatever needs to get done to retain his title.

“I don’t care. As long as I get the ‘W’. That’s all I care about. Knockout, submission, decision, I don’t care. As long as I get the ‘W’. That’s the task at hand. That’s all I care about.”

Check out the rest of the interview with heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic ahead of UFC 220 on Saturday night from Boston and don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel as well.