Former UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic made his first comments Monday since he was knocked out by title challenger Francis Ngannou at UFC 260 this past weekend.
Miocic posted an Instagram telling fans he was feeling fine physically after suffering a vicious knockout at the hands of Ngannou. He also apologized for not getting the job done and explained he made some technical errors that cost him in the second round:
“Unfortunately, I deviated from the game plan,” Stipe Miocic said, via TMZ. “I felt great coming into the second round, I saw it was beginning to go as planned. He was getting very winded, and I came in overzealous and unprotected. I wasn’t in a good posture to take the hit. He saw the opening, and did what any great fighter would have done.”
The heavyweight GOAT has nothing to apologize for, though he could lament said technical errors. It might not have mattered, anyway.
Though Miocic claims Ngannou was getting “winded,” the new heavyweight champion looked like a vastly improved fighter from the guy who first fought Stipe for the belt in January of 2018.
Ngannou was fluid and fired off calf and head kicks. One of the most pivotal moments of the fight came when he stuffed a Stipe Miocic takedown and followed by taking his back and landing strikes to the head.
Both fighters came out firing to start the second round, and Miocic even landed a strong hook after Ngannou dropped him with a left hook of his own. But Ngannou fired right back after Miocic tried to close the distance, ending the fight in spectacular fashion.
It remains to be seen what is next for the 38-year-old Miocic, who has done just about everything at the highest level of the sport. Ngannou, meanwhile, might have a fight with Jon Jones on the horizon.
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