Why Francis Ngannou should show out at UFC Beijing vs. Curtis Blaydes
Under normal circumstances, this fight would be a co-main event on one of the most heavily stacked pay-per-view cards of the year, with the winner becoming one of the leading contenders for the UFC’s heavyweight championship.
Instead, though, Curtis Blaydes and Francis Ngannou will fight in Beijing on UFC Fight Pass, not quite in obscurity but in an under-promoted bout two days after Thanksgiving that will begin as people on the West Coast are still fast asleep.
Blaydes is ranked third and Ngannou fourth in the UFC’s heavyweight division and the winner will move alongside ex-champions Stipe Miocic and Brock Lesnar as the logical successor to champion Daniel Cormier.
Blaydes, who since losing his UFC debut to Ngannou in 2016 has reeled off five wins, isn’t optimistic a victory over Ngannou this time around will put him into a title fight. A wrestler, Blaydes said he believes he’s not popular enough or exciting enough for the UFC to push and put into a title fight.
He said the fact that the UFC chose Derrick Lewis instead of him to fight Cormier for the title at UFC 230 in New York earlier this month is proof of that.
“In a perfect world, [the winner would get a title shot],” Blaydes said. “But I doubt it, to be honest. I’m more of a realist. I realize the UFC doesn’t want to promote my brand of fighting. It’s not the most viewer-friendly, I suppose. A lot of viewers don’t know how or choose not to appreciate wrestling. Obviously, my biggest tool is my wrestling. I’m not ever going to be a guy like Rampage [Jackson] or Chuck Liddell who just stands and bangs. I want to win and the best way for me to win is to use my wrestling.”
He said he hasn’t spoken to anyone in the UFC about it but said, “I can feel the vibe. It’s very evident. I don’t get the push, the pictures, the videos, the tags. I don’t get it. I understand why, because they choose to put out videos of two guys throwing haymakers instead of someone doing a takedown. It’s easier for the average fan to appreciate a nasty overhand than it is a nasty takedown, I guess.”
Ngannou has thrown enough nasty haymakers in his UFC career that he was beginning to become a cult figure. He began the year as the closest thing the UFC has ever had to a prime Mike Tyson but ends it as something of an enigma.
He was pummeled by Miocic in the main event of UFC 220, repeatedly being taken down and acting as if he’d never worked for a minute on takedown defense. He then lost what was one of the dullest fights in UFC history when he did next-to-nothing in a snore-fest with Lewis at UFC 226.
The fight with Lewis was hyped as a can’t miss slugfest and ended with fans raining boos. Ngannou has to begin the rebuild against Blaydes, whom he stopped in 2016 but who has subsequently looked impressive.
After UFC 226, UFC president Dana White ripped Ngannou and said he’d become difficult to work with.
It’s been a nightmare for Ngannou, who probably won’t get cut no matter the outcome because of his freakish punching power, but whose reputation will take a beating if he doesn’t show it against Blaydes.
Ngannou said the problems in the Lewis fight came as a result of him trying to do what he failed to accomplish in the Miocic fight.
“The fight plan against Stipe was to be patient, but I didn’t do that,” Ngannou said. “So against Lewis, I was patient, patient, patient, and before I knew it, the time had run out and the end of the fight was there.”
Ngannou knows he needs a win in the worst way, and spoke enthusiastically about showing different dimensions.
He predicted another win – their 2016 fight ended after two rounds when the referee ruled Blaydes couldn’t continue because an eye was swollen shut – but said it may come differently this time.
“If he takes me down, that’s not going to be bad for me,” Ngannou said. “I’m going to set my traps, set my traps and then, boom, I’m going to submit him. Yeah, I said that. I think this fight, it’s 60 percent that I win by submission, 30 percent by knockout and 10 percent by decision.”
Blaydes doesn’t believe he has to rely just on taking Ngannou down, because he said he has a far more well-rounded game now than he did in 2016.
He trains in Denver with the Elevation Fight Team and feels his striking and jiu-jitsu have improved dramatically.
He’s pessimistic about his odds of getting a title shot, but he’s not looking to leave the promotion and sign elsewhere because of it.
“I’m fine being in the UFC because the pay is really well,” Blaydes said. “I believe if I win this fight, I should get a title shot, but it’s not about what I believe. It’s about what the UFC believes. …
“If they don’t want to give me a title shot, I’m fine staying here and racking up the wins. I like being active. I’ll pretty much clean out the division. If I win eight, nine or 10 in a row, and there’s no one left, maybe then they’ll give me a shot. Maybe I’ll need to get it to 11 or 12 or 13 before they do it. I’m not going anywhere. I’m just going to keep winning and doing my job and we’ll see what happens.”
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