It took longer than many predicted, but Francis Ngannou is finally the UFC heavyweight champion of the world.
At UFC 260 on Saturday night, Ngannou got revenge for his 2018 loss to Stipe Miocic, obliterating Miocic in the second round to become the first African-born UFC heavyweight champion. It was the best performance of Ngannou’s career and one that should put the rest of the world on notice: this is not the same Francis Ngannou you’re used to, this is a whole different animal.
When Ngannou made his UFC debut back in 2015, he did so to little fanfare, with the commentary team even incorrectly pronouncing his last name as “Ga-No”.