'UFC 220 Embedded,' No. 2: A little boy's message to Francis Ngannou

The UFC kicks off the pay-per-view portion of 2018 this week, and the promotion has rolled out its “Embedded” treatment for a preview of UFC 220.

The event takes place Saturday at TD Garden in Boston and airs on pay-per-view following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass.

In the headliner, heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic (17-2 MMA, 11-2 UFC), who’s No. 1 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA heavyweight rankings, takes on No. 2-ranked Francis Ngannou (11-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC). And in the co-main event, Daniel Cormier(19-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) meets Volkan Oezdemir (15-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) in his first title defense of his second go-round as light heavyweight champion.

Here’s the UFC’s description of the second “Embedded” episode:

On Episode 2 of UFC 220 Embedded, light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier travels cross-country with his family and camp. Heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic shops for coat hooks alongside the friends who help with his home improvement. Light heavyweight Volkan Oezdemir watches teammates compete at Fight Night St. Louis. Back in the gym, he trains with his opponent’s former teammate and close friend Luke Rockhold. In New York City, heavyweight title challenger Francis Ngannou embarks on a day of media and laughs with Cormier. UFC 220 Embedded is an all-access, behind-the-scenes video blog leading up to the world heavyweight championship bout at UFC 220: Miocic vs. Ngannou on Saturday, January 20th on Pay-Per-View.

Check out the full episode in the video above.

Also see:

• ‘UFC 220 Embedded,’ No. 1: Stipe Miocic is a champion, just not with a snow blower

For more on UFC 220, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.