UFC on FOX 17 results: Francis Ngannou smashes Luis Henrique with uppercut

Francis Ngannou

ORLANDO, Fla. – In a battle of debuting heavyweights, it was the massive Francis Ngannou who made a lasting impression, scoring a devastating knockout of Luiz Henrique.

The heavyweight bout opened today’s UFC on FOX 17 event at Amway Center in Orlando, Fla. It streamed on UFC Fight Pass ahead of additional prelims on FOX Sports 1 and the FOX-televised main card.

Ngannou opened with a few crushing leg kicks, but Henrique was able to catch one and trip the action to the floor. Once there, Henrique remained heavy on top, though Ngannou simply held tight and earned a restart. Once back on the feet, the two spent time battling in the clinch in a relative stalemate before exchanging a few strikes to close the frame.

Ngannou looked to tee off on the feet in the second, but Henrique wisely closed the distance. However, he couldn’t take advantage of the position, and Ngannou capitalized. A few combinations started to land from range before a left uppercut landed flush and sent Henrique crashing to the floor. Ngannou followed with a smashing hammerfist on the canvas, but Henrique was already out from the devastating blow on the feet.

“That was my first fight, and I was a little bit nervous,” Ngannou admitted after the fight in his native French. “But I kept on with how I know how to fight, which is stay on my feet.”

With the win in his UFC debut, Ngannou (6-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) has won five consecutive fights overall. Henrique (8-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) sees a six-fight winning streak snapped.

Up-to-the-minute UFC on FOX 17 results include:

• Francis Ngannou def. Luiz Henrique via knockout (punch) – Round 2, 2:53

For more on UFC on FOX 17, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

(MMAjunkie’s Matt Erickson contributed to this report on site in Orlando.)