Francis Ngannou touts Stipe Miocic as the greatest of all time after winning UFC heavyweight title

Newly crowned UFC heavyweight world champion Francis Ngannou is singing praises for Stipe Miocic following his second-round knockout win over the latter in the main event of UFC 260 this weekend at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

The pair previously met inside the cage three years ago when Miocic successfully defended his gold-plated strap against Ngannou via unanimous decision. Ever since that fateful night, the new king of the heavyweight division had always dreamed of a second fight.

"Even if it wasn't for the title shot, I would have liked to have a rematch against Stipe. I always wanted my title fight to be against him since I lost to him in January 2018," said Ngannou.

"I wanted that revenge and as his resume speaks for itself, he is the greatest of all time and it is good to make a statement out of that."

The second round of their rematch saw Miocic getting dropped with a jab then put away for good with a perfectly timed left hook seconds later. It was not a pleasant sight, but Ngannou felt it was necessary to follow up with more punches acknowledging how durable the former champion is.

"I saw how he fell and I felt like he was hurt, but he's tough, so I didn't really want to give him any chance. That's why I followed that." —MGP, GMA News