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Dan Hardy has called Francis Ngannou a “nuclear weapon” heading into this Saturday’s UFC 260 main event.
Francis Ngannou is set to square off with Stipe Miocic for the second time in an attempt to capture the UFC heavyweight title. Ngannour attempted to do the same back at UFC 220 in 2018. However, that didn’t go too well for heavyweight as he fell to a unanimous decision loss against the Ohio native.
The Ngannou effect
At the moment, many fans are of the belief that the rematch will go a different way. Whether it be due to Francis Ngannou’s four-fight knockout streak or Miocic going through three tough wars against Daniel Cormier, there’s a real element of suspense attached to the contest.
Dan Hardy has been through some struggles with the UFC as of late but he’s still a constant presence for BT Sport, the UK’s primary source of MMA content. In an episode of his new show, Hardy spoke about the power of Francis Ngannou and how it matches up to Miocic's abilities.
“Francis Ngannou is the nuclear weapon in this one. We know he can land any punch from any direction, standing on one foot, with his eyes closed, and knock somebody out cold. That’s why he’s the betting favourite. He throws half as many strikes as Stipe, I mean literally, half as many strikes and his fight time is half the length as well," said Hardy.
“But there’s a benefit in Stipe having more fights. He’s got five more fights in MMA, he’s got that boxing experience. He knows how to stay safe, he knows how to keep his head out of danger. But doing it for 25 minutes with those four-ounce sleeping pills on, when you’ve got someone like Ngannou coming towards you, is a very very difficult thing to do," noted Hardy.
While Francis Ngannou has freakish power, fans have seen Miocic handle him fairly comfortably over the course of a 25-minute bout before. “The Predator” lost a significant amount of his fear factor the last time the two heavyweights met.
Whether or not lightning can strike twice remains to be seen, but fans will tune in to find out at UFC 260 this weekend.
