07 December 2023 , 15:54
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Francis Ngannou defended UFC legend Conor McGregor after he was labelled as "one dimensional".
McGregor is known for being an excellent striker, something that former NFL star Shannon Sharpe took issue with when discussing MMA with Ngannou in a recent chat. Despite having no fighting experience, Sharpe gave former UFC heavyweight champion Ngannou a pep talk about certain fighters not being well-rounded.
"The one thing about MMA, you can’t be one-dimensional,” Sharpe said on the Shay Shay podcast whilst speaking with Ngannou. “Ronda Rousey was one-dimensional. Conor McGregor is one-dimensional. He just throws punches.” Ngannou disagreed with Sharpe's claim about McGregor and pointed out the Irishman's skills on the ground.
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“Really? He has a good ground game, too,” Ngannou countered. “There is always somebody who has a better ground game than somebody, and when they say you have a decent ground game, it’s not the best in the game. It’s a sport with multiple disciplines. Most of the time, the champion is not great at one thing ... you just need to be good at a lot.”
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"Sometimes if you're fighting a wrestler, it's different because they have been wrestling for 20 years. You can't wrestle for two and three months in training camp and then compete with someone who has been wrestling their entire life. You just have to avoid that territory and in the end you might win the fight, but it doesn't mean you're a better wrestler."
McGregor has received criticism about his ground game throughout his fighting career, with fellow fighters and fans mocking his past submission defeats to Nate Diaz and Khabib Nurmagomedov. The former two-weight champion was awarded his Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt by John Kavanagh in September as he continues to gear up for his return next year.
UFC fans recently joked McGregor would get the better of Ngannou after he released new training footage ahead of his comeback fight. "Absolutely brilliant mate, Ngannou wouldn’t stand a chance against you," one user wrote. A second comment read: "Absolutely beautiful technique, I’m so excited for your return you are looking great."