Stipe Miocic was handily beaten in his rematch with Francis Ngannou. Now he has a gameplan to get his belt back, and it involves bulking up and adding 20lb to his frame for a third fight.
Heading into the rematch with Ngannou, Miocic knew that he was going to be facing a more improved version of the fighter he faced in 2018. Little did he know just how much better the French-Cameroonian had gotten.
From the start it was clear that things were not going according to plan for Stipe, with Francis defending against takedowns and being more measured than we had ever seen him. This ultimately led to Ngannou dethroning the champ with a second round knockout.
Stipe Miocic Plans To Bulk Up
Prior to the rematch with Francis Ngannou, Stipe Miocic spoke about wanting to come in at a leaner weight than their first fight. He felt that the 234lb frame that he carried into the contest would allow him to be faster than his opponent.
However it seems that this will not be the case for the third fight, if it ever comes together. Speaking in a recent interview, Stipe explained that he looks to bulk up about 20lb, in order to be stronger if a third fight materializes.
“Yeah, I want to get back what’s mine,” Miocic said.
“I’m trying to get to like 250… I just made 230 last time not because I tried, but because of training. I’m really going to stick to trying gain a little more weight and get a little more mass mass… I felt good, it’s just that I think 20 pounds will help. I’ll feel a lot stronger. He’s a big dude, there’s no question about it.”
With Stipe Miocic and Francis Ngannou being 1-1, it will be interesting to see what the former champ has to do to get a third fight. If he does bulk up, it might make a difference when it comes to how a rubber match between the two would go.
