Former UFC superstar Francis Ngannou suffered the highs and lows of boxing despite having just two professional bouts and winning neither of them. Now, the Cameroonian has spoken after his next fight was officially announced.
Ngannou dropped and almost defeated Tyson Fury on his professional boxing debut back in October 2023, losing a split-decision to the then WBC heavyweight champion that many viewers felt he was unlucky to be on the wrong side of.
However, ‘The Predator’ had less success when he went toe-to-toe with Anthony Joshua in February as he was dismantled within just two rounds, suffering the first stoppage defeat of his career inside the ring or in the Octagon as ‘AJ’ disregarded the chances of another impressive performance with a highlight-reel knockout.
This October, Ngannou (17-3) will return to MMA as he seeks to help the PFL rival the UFC and the opponent for his debut has now been confirmed, as current PFL heavyweight champion Renan “Problema” Ferreira (13-3, 3 NC) aims to shake things up and make a first successful defence of his title – following victory over Ryan Bader earlier this year.
In the press release for the event, PFL CEO Peter Murray labelled the contest as a ‘battle between the greatest fighters on the planet’.
“The Professional Fighters League is excited to announce the highly anticipated return of superstar, undisputed heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou, to MMA in The Battle of the Giants against the most-feared heavyweight, 6-foot-8 2023 PFL Heavyweight Champion Renan Ferreira in the biggest world title fight of the year.
“On October 19 live on ESPN+ in the U.S. and DAZN worldwide, MMA fans around the world will witness a true of battle of the greatest fighters on the planet competing for the PFL Super Fights Championship Belts.”
Meanwhile, Francis Ngannou claimed to have been ‘studying’ Ferreira for years and ‘telling people to watch this guy’, showing a clear level of respect for the Brazilian despite the fact that he has not competed in the UFC.
“Renan is a great fighter; I have been watching him for years.
“I have been studying him for years, in fact I’ve been telling people to watch this guy. He’s quite unique, he’s athletic, fast, his size doesn’t impress me as much as his skill.”
This will be Ngannou’s first MMA bout since his decision win over Ciryl Gane back in January 2022, that win acting as hit first and only defence of the UFC Heavyweight Championship and the end of Ngannou’s five-fight knockout streak.
He and Ferreira will go toe-to-toe on October 19th live on DAZN, with Cris “Cyborg” (27-2, 1 NC) squaring off against PFL two-division champion Larissa Pacheco (23-4) in the co-main event of the card.
The event is expected to be staged in Saudi Arabia, with Ngannou’s countryman and current PFL welterweight contender Cedric Doumbe (6-1) also likely to appear on the bill.
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