- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,257,134
- Reaction score
- 59
You must be registered for see images
INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MAY 16: Francis Ngannou knocks out Philipe Lins in their heavyweight bout during the main card of Netflix's Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano at Intuit Dome on May 16, 2026 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images for Netflix) | Getty Images for Netflix
Francis Ngannou added another jaw-dropping knockout to his resume after he put Philipe Lins down with a ferocious left hook in the first round in his first MMA fight since 2024.
Ngannou showed no fear taking on Lins and he came out gunning from the first second of the fight until the last. The end came after Ngannou threw a furious series of punches with his left hand clubbing Lins to send him flying to the canvas in a heap.
The referee immediately stopped the fight with the end coming at 4:31 in the opening round.
“I’ve got to give a lot of respect to Philipe,” Ngannou said after his win. “He was tougher than what I thought. We have a tough guy here. He’s legit. If somebody doesn’t remember who I am, they must have amnesia or something. It’s just another reminder.”
Ngannou wasted no time firing a couple of hard shots and a kick at Lins, who countered with a takedown attempt against the cage. Another flurry of punches came from Ngannou and Lins desperately tried to grab the legs to slow him down.
Ngannou switched to ground and pound and began hammering away at Lins on the canvas after trapping the Brazilian against the cage. Back on the feet, Ngannou kept throwing bombs and nearly took Lin’s head off with a kick that narrowly missed.
To his credit, Lins came back at Ngannou with a solid overhand punch but he couldn’t connect clean to do the damage needed to hurt the former UFC heavyweight champion.
As Lins did his best to stay away from Ngannou’s power, “The Predator” was just biding his time until he threw a huge combination that was capped off by that left hook that ended the fight. The shot ricocheted off Lins’ head and he fell to the ground with the fight being stopped just a split-second later.
It was another impressive knockout for Ngannou, although much like his win over Renan Ferreira it’s tough to tell how much that moves him forward in his MMA career based on the level of competition.
But Ngannou also wasted no time turning his attention to Jon Jones, who was part of the broadcast on Saturday, as well as Jake Paul, who promoted him on Saturday but may end up as a future opponent in boxing.
“Jon Jones is a great fighter, probably the best that has ever done MMA but in terms of business, he should be watching me and learn,” Ngannou said. “This fight is going to happen before we retire.
“Jake Paul is not running MVP. He’s just a blah, blah, blah guy. Nakisa runs the business. It was quite an easy process. Come on, I assume he’s a man now. Last time, I saw him he was still a boy. Maybe he has grown up.”
As far as Ngannou’s standing in the heavyweight division, he still believes he’s king even if he doesn’t have a title around his waist currently.
“[Best heavyweight] period,” Ngannou shouted. “That’s not a question. I’m the f*cking best. Period.”
Continue reading...
