Francis Ngannou challenges Derrick Lewis to back up talk: 'I'm here now'

Francis Ngannou appears to be ready to make his octagon return, and he’s looking to book a long-awaited grudge match with fellow hard-hitting heavyweight Derrick Lewis.

The exchanges between Ngannou (11-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC) and Lewis (19-5 MMA, 10-3 UFC) go back several years. They’ve taken pot-shots at each other while climbing up the UFC’s heavyweight pecking order, but their paths have yet to cross inside the octagon.

But it seems Ngannou is ready for that to change. “The Predator,” who has been largely off the radar since his title-fight loss to Stipe Miocic at UFC 220 in January, today sent a message directed at Lewis (via Twitter):

Lewis, who defeated Marcin Tybura by third-round knockout in his most recent bout at UFC Fight Night 126 in February, called out Ngannou, Cain Velasquez and Curtis Blaydes post-fight.

“The Black Beast” said he would relish the opportunity to fight any of them, but with Blaydes booked against Alistair Overeem at UFC 225 and Velasquez’s health status still unknown, the circumstances seem right to finally have a matchup with Ngannou come to fruition.

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