Francis Ngannou Claims ‘We’ll Have The Same Cain’ In Phoenix

Leading into his last fight, there were more than a few questions about former UFC title challenger’s Francis Ngannou‘s career trajectory.

After all, ‘The Predator’ has gone from arguably the most feared knockout artist in the UFC to a pair of head-scratching losses. His first defeat, a one-sided smattering at the hands of dominant then-champion Stipe Miocic, was perhaps excusable. But what followed, a strange, action-less decision loss to Derrick Lewis at UFC 226, was truly unsettling.

Fans whispered Ngannou had lost the fire. Things weren’t help by Dana White‘s suggestion that Ngannou’s ego had gotten to him. The French-Cameroonian responded well, however, knocking out Curtis Blaydes in the first round of the UFC Beijing main event last November. The win earned him a massive fight against former champion Cain Velasquez in the main event of this weekend’s (Sun., February 17, 2018) UFC on ESPN 1 from the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona.

Ngannou recently spoke to MMA Junkie about his match with the all-time great Velasquez. After he lost to a wrestler in Miocic, many wonder if the relentless pressure of Velasquez we’ll give him similar problems. Ngannou says he’s well prepared to wrestle. He believes we’ll see the same Velasquez we always have:

“I’ve been well prepared. You want me to tell you the gameplay? No. I think we are going to have the same Cain. He still has the experience. He stopped the fight his last fight, he ended up with a win, so he’s still got his confidence.”

Questions Remain

That last fight was in 2016 against a seemingly now-retired Travis Browne. While Velasquez is no doubt one of the greatest heavyweights to ever compete in the UFC, injuries have sapped him of becoming the true greatest. He has the skills and talent to become the unprecedented three-time champion. Only injuries that have kept him from reaching that level.

It’ll be interesting to see how Velasquez responds to his latest years-long layoff against Ngannou. The hulking striker has his own question marks, of course, but for wholly different reasons. Velasquez, when healthy, is known to take fighters into deep water with his nonstop cardio. Or he just finishes them outright.

With Ngannou’s ability to succeed in a long, drawn-out war with a top wrestler an unknown, Sunday night will be a telling one. He claims he’s prepared for Velasquez’ assault. If he is, another shot at the title could be within reach. That is a shocking concept considering where he was at last July.