Francis Ngannou believes that even though he may carry the mantle of reigning UFC heavyweight champion, the label of “greatest heavyweight of all time” still belongs to Stipe Miocic.
Francis Ngannou’s victory over Stipe Miocic at UFC 260 was the opposite of what would be classified as a “paper-thin win.” Ngannou turned in a dominant performance, outfighting Miocic in every aspect before ultimately landing a counter hook that put the Miocic era to rest. Ngannou may be the new ruler of the UFC heavyweights as 2021 prepares to enter its second quarter, but Miocic is still widely considered the consensus greatest heavyweight of all time, including by Ngannou himself.
“I think there’s still no doubt that Stipe is the greatest of all time, as his résumé said. Nobody has (taken) that from him,” Ngannou said at the UFC 260 post-fight press conference. “We’re gonna see what happens moving forward: me fighting, defending the title. And from there, we’re gonna know where is my position.”
It’s tough to argue with Ngannou’s admission that Miocic remains #1 on the all-time heavyweight pecking order. Miocic won the heavyweight title over someone who was, at the time, in the running for heavyweight GOAT status: Fabricio Werdum. He then went on to set the record for most consecutive heavyweight title defenses over legends Junior dos Santos and Alistair Overeem followed by a victory over Ngannou himself. But what may go down as Miocic’s biggest achievement is coming out the victor of his trilogy with all-time great Daniel Cormier.
Francis Ngannou’s résumé is not too shabby, either. The Cameroonian has wins over Cain Velasquez, Junior dos Santos, Alistair Overeem, Curtis Blaydes, and Stipe Miocic himself, all of which came by way of KO/TKO. Ngannou seems to be aware, though, that to be in the running for GOAT status, much of it is dependent on what you do once you hold the championship belt.
Do you agree with Francis Ngannou? Is Stipe Miocic still the GOAT after being knocked out by Francis Ngannou at UFC 260?
