Stipe Miocic to Defend Heavyweight Title vs. Francis Ngannou at UFC 220 in Boston

One of the most highly-anticipated heavyweight title fights in years will go down in Boston in early 2018, as Stipe Miocic will defend his crown against fast-rising contender Francis Ngannou at UFC 220.

Multiple outlets confirmed the booking on Wednesday following an initial report from MMAjunkie.com. The Las Vegas-based promotion has yet to formally announce the bout, but verbal agreements are reportedly in place.

UFC 220 takes place at TD Garden in Boston on Jan. 20 and will also include a light heavyweight championship clash between Daniel Cormier and Volkan Oezdemir. It is currently unclear which title fight would serve as the evening’s main event.

Miocic captured heavyweight gold with a first-round knockout of Fabricio Werdum at UFC 198 and has since successfully defended the belt with first-round stoppages of Alistair Overeem at UFC 203 and Junior dos Santos at UFC 211. The 35-year-old Ohioan has won five straight and 11 of his 13 Octagon appearances overall.

Ngannou, meanwhile, staked his claim to the No. 1 contender’s spot with a resounding first-round knockout of Overeem at UFC 218 this past Saturday. “The Predator” has been victorious in his first six UFC bouts, finishing all of his opponents inside of two rounds.