Can Stipe Miocic become the UFC’s new leading man?

UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic posted a photo of himself on Twitter this week, holding his belt in his right hand, with his left index finger extended upward.

Miocic inserted a caption: “Underdog.”

Clearly, he doesn’t believe he is one, even though the knockout prowess of upstart challenger Francis Ngannou (11-1) has persuaded the Westgate Superbook to install Ngannou as a minus-180 favorite while captivating the attention of mixed martial arts enthusiasts.

“It’s an amazing matchup for me. I match up well with him,” Miocic (17-2) told The Times recently in advance of his Friday appearance here alongside Ngannou at the UFC 220 news conference.

Their fight will be the main event of the UFC’s pay-per-view stop at Boston’s TD Garden on Jan. 20.

Miocic has won five consecutive fights, a streak that includes the same Alistair Overeem who Ngannou, 31, dispatched with a power punch 1 minute, 42 seconds into their Dec. 2 fight in Detroit.

“I think every fight you have is your toughest test. Everyone hits hard in the division and has knockout power,” Miocic said, nodding to the obvious — that a top priority in the fight plan is avoiding a Ngannou blow.

“It’s about being smart, about going out and doing what I want, dictating the fight. I’m not going to let him do what he wants. I want to make him feel real uncomfortable in there. Hard fight, but I want to put him in the deep waters he’s never been to.”

Ngannou, who made his pro MMA debut in 2013, has never fought into the third round.

The challenge of an extended fight shouldn’t be a problem for Miocic, who balances his training with his day job as a firefighter in Ohio.

He spoke to The Times while heading to a 12-hour shift on Dec. 23 and was there again from 11:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Christmas Day.

“It’s OK. I get out to hang out with family. I love what I do, I love helping people, staying busy and helping people, and it doesn’t matter what time of year it is,” he said.

Miocic’s rise to the top of the heavyweight division is often overshadowed by the outlandish antics of other fighters in the UFC.

He declined to elaborate on reported tension between himself and the UFC after fighting only once this year, limiting his comments to, “I’m fighting, aren’t I? That’s all that matters.”

He said as the organization looks for a new pay-per-view star with Conor McGregor and Georges St-Pierre on the shelf, Jon Jones suspended and Ronda Rousey effectively retired, “It’ll be other guys.”

“They promote other guys more than me. I don’t talk. They like the talkers — the smack talk, the drama. It’s not what I do, man. I just like to fight.”

Fighting Ngannou proves that.

Beating him should make Miocic, who can become the first heavyweight in UFC history to successfully defend his belt three times, the UFC’s new leading man.