Junior Dos Santos’ pick for hardest hitter he’s ever faced might surprise a lot of people.
Dos Santos, the former UFC heavyweight champion, fought the who’s who of big men during his octagon tenure. From devastating knockout artist Francis Ngannou, to Cain Velasquez, to Mark Hunt, and the UFC record holder for most knockout wins, Derrick Lewis, Dos Santos has faced it all.
But it was none of those names who stand out to Dos Santos as the man who landed the hardest punch on him. Dos Santos revealed to MMA Junkie Radio that another ex-champ, Stipe Miocic, landed a punch in their first fight in December 2014 that impacted him more than any other he’s ever been hit with.
“The hardest was Stipe Miocic in the first fight that I won,” Dos Santos told MMA Junkie Radio. “In the second round of the first fight, he connected with a cross on my face. It was very, very hard. I couldn’t see, and I couldn’t even hear. I was there, I was fine, I knew what was happening, but my vision was very blurry, almost black.
“The noise was bing (makes ringing noise) in my ear, and I couldn’t hear. I was trying to find him. Where is he? Luckily, he came closer to me, so then I held him for a little and I was breathing and kind of recovering. So, that was the hardest punch I ever took from a fighter. When they ask me this question, who hit me the hardest, it was Stipe Miocic who’s a very, very hard hitter of course.”
After earning a split decision win over fellow ex-UFC titleholder Fabricio Werdum last September, Dos Santos is set to take on former BKFC heavyweight champ Alan Belcher for the inaugural heavyweight title of Jorge Masvidal’s Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA on March 2 at Kia Center in Orlando, Fla.
Meanwhile, Miocic is expected to challenge UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones next – a rebooking of their UFC 295 matchup that fell apart after Jones withdrew due to injury.
