Having faced Francis Ngannou and trained with Jon Jones, @alistairovereem loves the idea of a “mega fight” between the two and “definitely thinks Jon could beat him.” (via @arielhelwani) pic.twitter.com/mhVcXT4Aae
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) May 18, 2020
Alistair Overeem has firsthand experience with both Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou.
The veteran heavyweight was a former training partner of Jones’ during his stint at Jackson-Wink MMA, and he was on the wrong end of one of Ngannou’s highlight-reel knockouts in the Octagon.
Jones and Ngannou recently engaged in a little back-and-forth on social media regarding a potential bout, and while UFC president Dana White was dismissive of the idea, Overeem believes the light heavyweight champion would have a good showing against “The Predator.”
“I’ve been seeing that online, I love that idea of them two,” Overeem told ESPN. “I just love it. I definitely think Jon can beat him.
“But to be honest, with all due respect, I do not think Jon is gonna do that fight.”
While Jones has contemplated a move to heavyweight for years now, thus far he has remained at 205 pounds where he has continued to establish himself as perhaps the greatest light heavyweight ever – despite a litany of issues in and out of the cage. Overeem is skeptical that the prospect of facing Ngannou would provide enough incentive for his former training partner to make the leap.
“Not much to win, a lot to lose. Because if he wins, he’s not heavyweight champion. The fight after that would be for the title, I guess,” Overeem said.
“It’s a complex situation, but I definitely think Jon can beat him. It would be mega-fight. So it’s definitely something I am very much looking forward to …. I really enjoy these guys smack talking back and forth. It’s really amusing, and hopefully it will produce some great, great mega fights.