Francis Ngannou vs Philipe Lins Predictions & Picks
Francis Ngannou is tipped to knock out Philipe Lins in this heavyweight fight.
Ngannou has had just one MMA fight in the past four years, but he retains that brutal finishing power that can overwhelm Lins in this one.
- 13 of Francis Ngannou’s 18 career wins have been by knockout
- 9 of Francis Ngannou’s last 10 stoppage wins have ended in Round 1
- Francis Ngannou has gone the distance in just 1 of his last 7 MMA fights
- 4 of Philipe Lins’ 5 career defeats have come via knockout
- 3 of Philipe Lins’ 4 knockout losses ended in the 1st round
Francis Ngannou Form
Francis Ngannou is a former UFC heavyweight champion with a professional record of 18-3 (13 KOs, 4 Subs).
Ngannou debuted in the UFC in December 2015 and immediately sent a message to the rest of the heavyweight division with six straight victories.
During that run he took out former champion Andrei Arlovski in 92 seconds, and he then secured a title fight with a 102-second demolition of Alistair Overeem in December 2017.
However, he put in a tepid display when he challenged Stipe Miocic, losing via unanimous decision, and then earned a great deal of criticism when a gun-shy performance against Derrick Lewis resulted in another points loss.
The 38-year-old Cameroonian answered his critics in brutal fashion though, knocking out Curtis Blaydes in 45 seconds.
Ngannou then made quick work of two former champions as he knocked out Cain Velasquez in 26 seconds and Junior dos Santos in 71 seconds.
A 20-second knockout of Jairzinho Rozenstruik earned him another title shot, and this time he made the most of his opportunity as he knocked out Stipe Miocic in the second round.
‘The Predator’ made one successful defence of the championship, out-pointing Ciryl Gane in January 2022, before allowing his UFC contract to expire.
He then crossed over to boxing and lost a split decision to Tyson Fury in which he knocked down the former heavyweight champion, before suffering a second-round knockout loss at the hands of another ex-champion, Anthony Joshua, in 2024.
Ngannou got back to winning ways later that year, as he returned to MMA to take out Renan Fereira in the second round in what proved to be his only fight under the PFL banner.
Philipe Lins Form
Philipe Lins is a former UFC fighter with a professional record of 18-5 (9 KOs, 4 Subs).
Lins debuted in the UFC in 2020 following a successful run with the PFL promotion that saw him win the 2018 heavyweight tournament.
He struggled early in his career with the UFC though, as he followed up a unanimous decision defeat to Andre Arlovski with a first-round knockout loss to Tanner Boser.
The 40-year-old Brazilian did finally get off the mark in April 2022 though, out-pointing Marcin Prachnio over three rounds in his return to light-heavyweight.
Lins then went on to knock out Ovince Saint Preux in the first round and beat Maxim Grishin by unanimous decision in 2023.
Then, in what was his most recent outing, he ended his UFC career with a points success against Ion Cutelaba.