Demetrious Johnson, a UFC legend, has taken back his contentious prediction on Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou&#8217;s fantasy MMA matchup.
Despite lacking official MMA training, the former UFC flyweight champion faced criticism for implying that Joshua would defeat Ngannou in the Octagon.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://talksport.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/03/anthony-joshua-punches-francis-ngannou-885594339.jpg?strip=all&amp;w=960" width="960" height="640" data-credit="Getty" data-img="https://talksport.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/03/anthony-joshua-punches-francis-ngannou-885594339.jpg?strip=all&amp;w=960" />
Joshua destroyed Ngannou in the boxing ring.
Joshua knocked out Ngannou in the second round when they met in the squared circle in March and &#8216;Mighty Mouse&#8217; anticipated that the same would happen in MMA due to the Cameroonian&#8217;s boxing-heavy style.
“Does Anthony Joshua beat Francis Ngannou in an MMA fight? I think he does,”Johnson said on his YouTube channel shortly after Ngannou and Joshua&#8217;s boxing bout.
“It would just be another striking match. AJ understands his distance.
&#8220;He understands the void. He has better hands than Francis, and he can make Francis even whiff and miss again.
“Unless Francis is going to change his tactic and go clinch him and wrestle him. But AJ is very athletic.
&#8220;He is smaller, he’s more limber. I think he’d be able to stuff the shot and be able to give it to Francis Ngannou.”
But after witnessing Ngannou maul Renan Ferreira on the ground over the weekend to claim the PFL heavyweight crown, Johnson has made a U-turn over his initial prediction.
&#8220;Yeah he would of beat the bricks off AJ,&#8221; tweeted Johnson.
The Cameroonian cage fighter had been out of action since defending the UFC heavyweight title against Ciryl Gane in January 2022.
However, there were no signs of ring rust as he dumped Ferreira on his back in the first round and closed the show with some heavy ground and pound.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://talksport.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/03/20fee286-2fdb-4df7-a934-76dd1d0b47ea.jpg?strip=all&amp;w=640" width="640" height="960" data-credit="GETTY" data-img="https://talksport.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/03/20fee286-2fdb-4df7-a934-76dd1d0b47ea.jpg?strip=all&amp;w=640" />
flyweight great Johnson thought Joshua would do the same in MMA.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://talksport.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/10/GettyImages-2178734104.jpg?strip=all&amp;w=960" width="960" height="640" data-credit="GETTY" data-img="https://talksport.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/10/GettyImages-2178734104.jpg?strip=all&amp;w=960" />
However, after witnessing Ngannou crush Ferreira, he shifted his position.
Ngannou questioned whether he would ever fight again after losing his 15-month-old son, Kobe, to a catastrophic brain abnormality in April. But when faced with hardship, he had incredible mental toughness. After the bout, Ngannou was overcome with emotion and sobbed into his teammates&#8217; arms.
&#8220;I can&#8217;t think about anything other than my son Kobe,&#8221; a tearful Ngannou said in his post-fight interview.
&#8220;I did this fight for him and I&#8217;m done so I don&#8217;t know.
&#8220;I hope they can remember his name because without Kobe I wouldn&#8217;t be here tonight&#8230;
&#8220;It was tough [fighting tonight]. Not only the training camp was tough, but the past two days were very tough and full of emotion.
&#8220;I couldn&#8217;t do anything without thinking about it. I&#8217;m trying to be strong but it&#8217;s hard man.&#8221;

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Demetrious Johnson Changes His Prediction on Joshua vs. Ngannou After Ferreira’s Brutal KO.