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This weekend sees UFC 270 go down from Anaheim, California. In the main event, Francis Ngannou defends his heavyweight title against interim champion Ciryl Gane.
If Ngannou can successfully defend his title against Gane this Saturday, it’ll undoubtedly make him the best heavyweight on the planet, but will he be the greatest in UFC history?
It’s definitely a question that’s worth debating. If he can defeat ‘Bon Gamin’ as he’s done to so many other fighters in the octagon, it’d be hard to deny him the spot.
Here are five reasons why 'The Predator' should be considered the UFC’s heavyweight GOAT if he can beat Ciryl Gane.
#5. Francis Ngannou will have essentially cleaned out his division with a win over Ciryl Gane
To become known as the greatest of all time in any weight class in the UFC, it probably goes without saying that a fighter needs to clean their division out by beating all possible challengers.
If he can defeat Ciryl Gane this weekend, it’s probably safe to argue that Francis Ngannou would have done just that. Of the UFC’s current top 10, ‘The Predator’ holds victories over Stipe Miocic (No.2), Curtis Blaydes (No.4) and Jairzinho Rozenstruik (No.6).
Admittedly, he hasn’t fought many of the other ranked fighters, including Alexander Volkov, Chris Daukaus and Marcin Tybura. However, all of those fighters largely hold losses to the ones that Ngannou has already dispatched.
Sure, there may be some value in the Cameroonian fighter facing Derrick Lewis, who defeated him in an odd fight in 2018, or prospects like Tom Aspinall or Tai Tuivasa in the future. However, for now, at least, it’s hard to see a real challenge for him if he can defeat Gane.
Essentially, ‘The Predator’ will be in a rare position should he be able to defeat ‘Bon Gamin’ in that it’ll be nearly impossible to imagine any other heavyweight on the UFC’s roster defeating him.
Very few other heavyweights, if any, in UFC history have gotten to that point, which would make Ngannou the GOAT.
#4. Francis Ngannou has claimed the most UFC performance bonuses in heavyweight history
Francis Ngannou has now been with the UFC for just over six years, dating back to his octagon debut in December 2015. During that time, he’s put together a truly remarkable record, winning 11 fights while losing just two.
More impressive, however, has been the nature of Ngannou’s victories. ‘The Predator’ has never won a fight in the octagon via decision, with a total of 10 knockouts and one submission on his ledger.
The fans naturally give plenty of credit to fighters such as Charles Oliveira and Donald Cerrone, both of whom have claimed some of the most post-fight bonuses in UFC history. However, it might come as a surprise to some to learn that Ngannou has more bonuses than any other heavyweight in the promotion’s history.
The native of Cameroon has claimed six bonus awards during his tenure with the promotion. That puts him ahead of his nearest competitor, former UFC heavyweight kingpin Stipe Miocic.
Sure, claiming bonus awards aren’t always a mark of a truly great fighter. Ovince Saint Preux holds the record in the light heavyweight division and he certainly wouldn’t make the top 10 of greats at that weight. However, the fact that Ngannou has taken out so many great opponents in memorable fashion puts him at the very top of heavyweight history.
#3. Francis Ngannou already holds a win over the UFC’s consensus heavyweight GOAT
The UFC heavyweight division has always been an interesting place. Despite it being the promotion’s oldest weight class, no single fighter has ever been able to dominate it in the same way that, say, Anderson Silva did at middleweight or Georges St-Pierre did at welterweight.
Prior to Francis Ngannou’s UFC heavyweight title win last year at UFC 261, the UFC’s consensus heavyweight GOAT was Stipe Miocic. He largely gained that position due to the fact that during his first reign as champion, he was able to successfully defend his title on three occasions.
However, Miocic never truly dominated the division per say and never felt like a GOAT in the same way that Silva or GSP did.
Ngannou, on the other hand, certainly feels like he could dominate like those two fighters did. The fact that he was able to destroy Miocic in violent fashion last year was naturally a great place to start.
Sure, a fighter who defeats a consensus GOAT doesn’t always claim that status, just ask Chris Weidman, who dethroned Silva in 2013.
However, if Ngannou can follow his win over Miocic with another dominant victory over Ciryl Gane, it’d be hard not to consider him in that spot.
#2. Francis Ngannou doesn’t just beat his opponents, he destroys them
Perhaps the biggest reason to label Francis Ngannou as the UFC’s heavyweight GOAT is that he doesn’t just beat his opponents inside the octagon, he destroys them to the point that they’re often never the same again.
Nobody hits quite as hard as ‘The Predator’, who has a total of 10 knockouts to his name inside the octagon. However, it’s the aftermath of his knockouts that makes him such a scary proposition for opponents to face.
Both Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos were basically finished at the top level after Francis Ngannou sparked them out in 2019. Velasquez outright retired from MMA after the defeat and dos Santos was cut after he spiralled into a string of losses.
Alistair Overeem’s time as a top-level contender was basically done once Francis Ngannou destroyed him with probably the most brutal uppercut in UFC history. Meanwhile, nobody really knows how well Stipe Miocic will return from his recent knockout loss to ‘The Predator’.
In fact, it’s even worth noting that some observers put Miocic’s 2018 loss to Daniel Cormier partially down to the damage he took from Ngannou in their first fight six months beforehand.
Essentially, the UFC has seen some great heavyweights before, but nobody has ever held the fear factor quite like Francis Ngannou does. That means that a big win over Ciryl Gane this weekend would surely make him the GOAT of the division.
#1. No other UFC heavyweight will have beaten so many top fighters
Amanda Nunes is widely recognized as the greatest female fighter in UFC history. One major justification for handing her that title is the fact that during her career, she has defeated a total of six former or current UFC champions.
If we’re using that criteria to decide a GOAT, then, it’s basically impossible to overlook Francis Ngannou in the heavyweight division.
The reigning UFC heavyweight champion has picked up wins over a total of four former or current UFC champions during his time in the octagon. All four of those fighters, Andrei Arlovski, Cain Velasquez, Junior dos Santos and Stipe Miocic, were knocked out.
If you then add in the fact that he also holds wins over one of the most decorated heavyweights of all time in Alistair Overeem, as well as another of the highest ranked fighters of the current generation in the form of Curtis Blaydes, and it’s hard to argue with his credentials.
More to the point, it’s also easy to pass over his two losses as he defeated Miocic in a rematch and his decision loss to Derrick Lewis could well have gone the other way on the scorecards. Sure, that fight was bad, but even the best fighters have the odd stinker. Since then, ‘The Predator’ has more than made up for it.
Essentially, no other heavyweight in UFC history has defeated as many top opponents as Ngannou, which means that with a win over another UFC titleholder in Ciryl Gane this weekend, it’ll be hard not to consider him the heavyweight GOAT.
