UFC free fight: Francis Ngannou starches Stipe Miocic to win heavyweight title

Francis Ngannou exacted his revenge on Stipe Miocic in emphatic fashion.

Three years after dropping a lopsided decision to Miocic in their title fight in 2018, Ngannou climbed his way back up to a rematch by scoring four consecutive first-round knockouts.

Ngannou rematched Miocic for the heavyweight title in the main event of UFC 260 last March, and the fight played out completely differently than their first outing. Ngannou presented a much more patient and calculated approach, landing a hard leg kick and connecting with a big overhand right in Round 1, which Miocic ate.

Miocic went in for a single leg, but Ngannou defended well by sprawling and landing big shots for some heavy ground and pound. The challenger followed it up with a left high kick, but he never got overzealous in his attack. Less than a minute into Round 2, Ngannou dropped Miocic with a step-in jab but was caught lunging in on the counter. But Ngannou had a counter of his own waiting for Miocic as he folded him with a thunderous left hook, which sat him down and finished the fight.

Ngannou (16-3 MMA, 11-2 UFC) returns to action Jan. 22 when he takes on interim heavyweight champ Ciryl Gane (10-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) in the main event of UFC 270 at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.

Before he faces Gane, relive Ngannou’s finish of Miocic in the video above.