(This story appears in Wednesday’s print edition of USA TODAY.) A few different things happened in the moments right after Francis Ngannou ’s enormous fist crashed into the jaw of perennial heavyweight contender Alistair Overeem in December at UFC 218. The first was that Overeem, all 247 pounds of him, went flying through the air like a bowling pin. The second was that an eerie quiet settled over Little Caesar’s Arena, with even the UFC’s experienced cageside commentators looking momentarily stricken by the sheer brutality of the first-round knockout . The third was that Stipe Miocic , the UFC heavyweight champion who will defend his title against Ngannou at UFC 220 this Saturday at TD Garden in Boston, shrugged his shoulders and went about his business. Related UFC 220 main-event breakdown: Can Stipe Miocic upset Francis Ngannou to set title record?
Read the original: