{"id":265155,"date":"2017-12-06T12:12:40","date_gmt":"2017-12-06T20:12:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/?p=265155"},"modified":"2017-12-06T12:12:40","modified_gmt":"2017-12-06T20:12:40","slug":"coach-says-francis-ngannou-champ-boxing-eyes-showdown-joshua-wilder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/mma-news\/francis-ngannou\/coach-says-francis-ngannou-champ-boxing-eyes-showdown-joshua-wilder\/","title":{"rendered":"Coach says Francis Ngannou “could be a champ in boxing,” eyes showdown with Joshua or Wilder"},"content":{"rendered":"

Francis Ngannou, a French-Cameroonian juggernaut with c-4 packed into each of his gloves, is now the top contender in the UFC heavyweight division. He is expected to take on the promotion’s heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic some time in the near future \u2013 perhaps as soon as UFC 220 this January in Boston<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Whenever this massive heavyweight title fight occurs, Ngannou’s striking coach Dewey Cooper \u2013 a former boxer and kickboxer \u2013 assures his student will be ready.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhenever we get the date, he\u2019ll be ready,” Cooper told MMAJunkie Radio<\/a> this week. “I like to let things simmer down, refresh yourself, and go again.\u201d<\/p>\n

With the UFC heavyweight title now in reach, Cooper also believes Ngannou could become a world-class heavyweight boxer. He’s just that quick of a learner, and that talented of an athlete.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t some jock-type guy,\u201d Cooper said. \u201cHe\u2019s really smart, he really studies, he really studies, and he really believes what he\u2019s going to accomplish. Everything is coming to fruition right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has punching power,\u201d he added. \u201cAnyone that has that equalizer will fare well. If he spends more time and takes it seriously, trains hard, he could be a champ in boxing also.”<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone was so enthralled about the Conor McGregor – Floyd Mayweather fight. I\u2019d like to see Francis, about one year from now, fight whoever the heavyweight champion is, whether it be Deontay Wilder or Anthony Joshua. That would be a real fight, where an MMA fighter could go in there and upset a current boxing champion.\u201d<\/p>\n

Francis Ngannou earned his number-one-contender status with a first-round execution of long-time contender Alistair Overeem. His next most recent win occurred back in January, when he knocked out Andrei Arlovski batteries, also in the first round. The surging contender is now 6-0 in the UFC’s Octagon, and 11-1 in sum. Do you think he can poach Stipe Miocic to become the heavyweight division’s apex predator?<\/p>\n

This article first appeared on\u00a0<\/i>BJPenn.com<\/i><\/span><\/a>\u00a0on 6\/12\/2017.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Francis Ngannou, a French-Cameroonian juggernaut with c-4 packed into each of his gloves, is now the top contender in the UFC heavyweight division. He is expected to take on the promotion’s heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic some time in the near future \u2013 perhaps as soon as UFC 220 this January in Boston. Whenever this massive […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":54430,"featured_media":265156,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[10646],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nCoach says Francis Ngannou "could be a champ in boxing," eyes showdown with Joshua or Wilder | BJPenn.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/mma-news\/francis-ngannou\/coach-says-francis-ngannou-champ-boxing-eyes-showdown-joshua-wilder\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Coach says Francis Ngannou "could be a champ in boxing," eyes showdown with Joshua or Wilder | BJPenn.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Francis Ngannou, a French-Cameroonian juggernaut with c-4 packed into each of his gloves, is now the top contender in the UFC heavyweight division. He is expected to take on the promotion’s heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic some time in the near future \u2013 perhaps as soon as UFC 220 this January in Boston. 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