Francis Ngannou’s fight against Ciryl Gane in the UFC 270 headliner didn’t go the way anyone seemed to expect. Two highly respected strikers – one with devastating power, the other with a large bag of technical tricks – went five whole rounds, in what ultimately proved to be mostly a grappling contest.
Later fans would learn that the ‘Predator’ had suffered a severe knee injury in training, one that had medical professionals advising that he pull out of the fight. But he didn’t, and walked away the victor nonetheless.
And while it may not have been the prettiest thing, Ngannou cornerman and current UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman had some glowing praise for the Xtreme Couture trained fighter.