It has seemed like the heavyweight division has been in a bit of a limbo for a while now. However things appear to be moving, with the UFC looking to book Stipe Miocic vs Francis Ngannou 2 at the beginning of the year.
Heavyweight champion Miocic has not fought since defending his title against Daniel Cormier, in their trilogy fight in August. While that is not a terribly long time, the problem is that he and DC have essentially held up the division for two years, leading to frustrations from the likes of Ngannou. The Cameroonian has been on a tear himself lately, beating his last four opponents in a combined time of just 2:42, putting him firmly in place as the rightful next challenger for the throne. The other variable that has been out there, is former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones who is moving up in weight, which left people wondering if the UFC would book him for the title instead.
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UFC Wants Stipe Miocic vs Francis Ngannou 2 In March
Now it seems that a bit of clarity is finally occurring in the UFC’s heavyweight division. According to reports, the promotion is looking to book Stipe Miocic vs Francis Ngannou for UFC 259, in March. Not only that, but it seems that they would like the winner to face Jon Jones sometime in the summer, to defend the heavyweight strap.
“The UFC wants Stipe Miocic to defend the heavyweight title against Francis Ngannou in March,” ESPN’s Ariel Helwani says. “The title fight isn’t a done deal just yet, but that is definitely what the promotion wants, I’m told. In a perfect world, the UFC would like for the winner of that fight to defend the belt against Jones in the summer, sources said.”
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It is good to see that the UFC is doing the right thing by the rankings and having Stipe Miocic face Francis Ngannou. You would be hard pressed to find anyone who would be bothered by the winner of that fight taking on Jon Jones.
