UFC: Mike Winkeljohn Predicts How Jon Jones Beats Francis Ngannou

Francis Ngannou fulfilled his dream of becoming the UFC heavyweight champion by knocking out Stipe Miocic in the UFC 260 main event this past weekend. And if all goes well, his next fight will be against the Jon Jones.

Ngannou showed huge improvements in his overall game in the rematch. In the first round, ‘The Predator’ picked his shots patiently and hurt Miocic multiple times, before putting him away with a thunderous combination at the start of the second round. The new champion’s performance certainly caught the attention of Jones, who tweeted that he’s ready to go, if the price is right.

A $50 Million Fight

During the UFC 260 post-fight press conference, Dana White joked that if he was Jones, he’d move down to middleweight to avoid fighting Ngannou. This resulted in a Twitter tirade from the former light heavyweight champion.

While negotiations between the two parties remain at a stalemate, Coach Mike Winkeljohn told Submission Radio (as transcribed by MMA Junkie) that there’s no reason why Jones shouldn’t be paid well when a super fight with Ngannou could easily be a $50 million blockbuster.

“I think this fight can be easily as [big as] some of the big Mayweather fights out there,” Winkeljohn said. “What did Floyd Mayweather make? A hundred million? I don’t know. You know, that type of thing. He was kind of his own promoter. So, Jon’s got to share that with the UFC as far as on pay-per-view buys.

“But I don’t see why it wouldn’t be a $50 million fight, and the UFC still makes bank and is able to pay off a lot of the debt they have and go forward. I think the UFC needs a superstar like Jon Jones. I think Conor [McGregor] was the guy for a while, and he’s fallen off. But those big names is what makes the UFC money, ultimately.”

Jon Jones Beats Francis Ngannou

Should the two meet inside the Octagon, Winkeljohn predicts that Jones would submit Ngannou in the later stages of the fight.

“I expect Jon Jones to just take the plate and hit a homerun,” Winkeljohn stated. “There’s no doubt about it. You know what? It’s about Jon imposing his will and fighting where he wants, and where he doesn’t want to, he won’t be there in the fight. So, it’s all about Jon Jones’ mentality and how smart he is. He’s got the experience on Francis, there’s no doubt about that, and Jon’s a big guy now. People would be surprised.

“He’s been hammering the weights, lifting. His power doubles, he can launch people over his head like crazy. He’s just so strong everywhere, and he hasn’t lost any speed. I think people are going have a great new look at the better Jon Jones in the future. Oh gosh, Jon finishes him late in the fight. I think Jon, after some ground-and-pound, will end up tapping Francis out late in the fight.”

Jon Jones Is The Better Fighter

Ngannou’s one-punch knockout power and explosiveness are no secret, and there’s no doubt that he’ll have a major advantage in that department in a potential fight with Jones. Winkeljohn however, believes his man is the better fighter overall.

“I mean, there’s no doubt,” Winkeljohn said. “I think Jon’s got the advantage [in wrestling]. Francis can explode out of anything, but it’s also the conditioning aspect. People don’t understand that Jon’s cardio has always been better than his opponents, and that’s what he brings to the table. And you can scramble so many times, and at that point in time, now your cardio starts taking over. And the strongest man in the world is very, very weak if they don’t have any cardio.”

Do you think Jon Jones can beat the improved version of Francis Ngannou?

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