5 reasons why Francis Ngannou would destroy Jon Jones

#4. At heavyweight, Jon Jones might not be as quick

Francis Ngannou’s explosive speed might be enough to surprise Jon Jones.

Francis Ngannou’s punching power might be the most vaunted part of his overall game. However, ‘The Predator’ is also a sneakily fast fighter who can spot gaps in his opponents’ defense, and capitalize in a matter of seconds.

So how would this surprising speed play in a potential fight with Jon Jones? It’s likely it would serve Ngannou very well indeed. From what we’ve seen over the years, Jones is not a slow light heavyweight by any means. However, it’s also arguable that he has never displayed the kind of explosive speed we’ve seen Ngannou use to take out the likes of Alistair Overeem and Stipe Miocic.

The fact that ‘Bones’ has only ever landed two standing knockouts – his 2017 win over Daniel Cormier and his 2011 win over Mauricio Rua – stands testament to that.

Moreover, as a bulked-up heavyweight, it’s arguable that Jones would lose even the speed he showed at 205 lbs. Would that slow him by heavyweight standards? Absolutely not, but against a fighter as explosive as Francis Ngannou, that may prove to be the case.

Considered the same, it’s easy to envision a scenario in which a slowed-down Jones might throw a strike at Ngannou. He might then find himself knocked silly by one of the heavyweight champion’s sledgehammers.

---

#3. Francis Ngannou’s takedown defense now looks stronger

Going by his recent fights, Francis Ngannou’s wrestling may no longer be a weak point.

One area of Francis Ngannou’s game that was an Achilles heel was his wrestling. His lack of takedown defense led to his 2018 defeat against Stipe Miocic, the first time ‘The Predator’ suffered a loss in his MMA career.

However, since then, we’ve seen real evidence that the Cameroon native has shored up his wrestling significantly. In his rematch with Miocic in 2021, Ngannou was able to shrug off the takedowns of the former NCAA Division I All-American, and even took him down with a takedown of his own at one point.

In his most recent victory, he took Ciryl Gane – a man who has shown excellent takedown defense in his own right – down on multiple occasions. Ngannou used those takedowns to secure a unanimous decision victory.

Before these bouts, it might’ve been wise to expect Jon Jones – one of the greatest wrestlers in UFC history – to use his takedowns to ground Ngannou and eventually beat him. However, that doesn’t seem likely now.

Instead, when you consider Ngannou’s size, strength and improved wrestling, it seems more likely that Jones may not be able to get him to the ground, particularly as the latter favors takedowns from the clinch.

So if ‘Bones’ cannot put ‘The Predator’ on his back, can he really win the fight? The likely answer is no.