Demian Maia and Francis Ngannou
Demian Maia and Francis Ngannou in the same sentence!?
Maia is in the twilight phase of his career. Considered to be one of the greatest grapplers in MMA history, the 43-year old Brazilian is set to fight Belal Muhammad in the main card of UFC 263 this weekend.
Age has never affected Maia who has challenged for the welterweight title twice in the UFC. He has been a part of the UFC since 2007 having made his debut against Ryan Jensen at UFC 77.
Aaron Bronsteter of TSN recently pointed out a stunning Demian Maia stat, in comparison to knockout artist and arguably the greatest puncher in MMA history – Francis Ngannou.
The stat revealed that Ngannou has won 7 fights when he has landed less than 10 significant strikes, while Maia has won 8 when he has landed less than 10 significant strikes.
One shouldn’t get things twisted here. It doesn’t mean that Maia is a better knockout artist than Ngannou.
In fact, Ngannou and Maia’s styles are more contrasting than an oxymoron. The point to be noted here is that, the stat shows just how good Maia is on the ground.
While Ngannou hits his opponent like a Ford Escort, Maia takes his opponents to the deepest parts of the ocean and buries them.
Not many fighters stay relevant in their division after turning 40. But Demian Maia is an exception.
Despite being 43, the Brazilian is still ranked number 9 in the welterweight division. In a recent interview with Combate, he opened up about his retirement and revealed when he would like to hang up his gloves.
Maia said:
“If I do well, and mostly if I feel well, I’d like to have one more fight after this, to retire. It’s either going to be this one or the one after. It won’t go past that.” [via Combate]
Maia will be looking forward to making his last years in the UFC count.
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