It feels like it was ages ago when Francis Ngannou fought in the UFC cage and defended his heavyweight world title. And, well, part of the reason behind that feeling is the truth that it has been quite a while.
Ngannou’s last MMA appearance dates back to early 2022 when he overcame Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 in a five-round performance. Considering the bout took place more than 900 days ago, it’s not surprising that a lot has changed since then.
The Cameroonian heavyweight is no longer a champion, nor is he on the top MMA brand’s roster anymore. However, the tradeoff for him was quite lucrative: He has inked deals in both MMA with the PFL and elsewhere in boxing, making his dramatic exit from the company in 2023 seem worthwhile.
Ngannou remains a big, relevant name in MMA, but the truth is that he hasn’t fought in a long time. That will end soon when he returns at PFL’s October 19th pay-per-view card against 2023 promotional champ Renan Ferreira. The bout will headline a card which will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as announced by the promotion Thursday.
By the time Ngannou returns, he’ll be ending a break from the cage that lasted more than 1,000 days. If he was still on the UFC roster, only 14 of the more than 600 fighters would have a longer break from action than him, per database Roster Watch.
This long amount of time away from the MMA cage admittedly has given Ngannou some nerves heading into October. However, he has felt positive since getting back into training.
“I’m very excited about this, but also a little nervous,” Ngannou said during a press conference this week. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been here. I remember when I got back to the gym two months ago, I was so, so nervous. Like maybe I have forgotten how to fight. But as soon as I got on the mats, I realized it was always there. It never left.”
Ngannou’s time away from MMA saw him step into the world of boxing, where he was immediately matched up against the heavyweight division’s top names. He first met then-champion Tyson Fury last October, colliding in a 10-round showdown. Despite losing, massive underdog Ngannou scored a knockdown early and did enough to force a split decision result, surprising many in the process.
His second matchup came against Anthony Joshua, a former champ who now finds himself back on the rise. The fight was much more one-sided than his prior outing, with Joshua delivering a brutal second-round knockout against Ngannou. The loss put a pause on Ngannou’s boxing career and offered the right time for a return to MMA.
Some might believe that a run in boxing would allow Ngannou to not feel like he took any time away from training for an MMA fight. It’s combat sports, after all. However, Ngannou stressed that the skills are hard to transfer from one to the other.
“Boxing is a completely different sport,” said Ngannou, when asked about how his boxing lessons might be utilized in MMA. “It might be a combat sport, but it’s very different from MMA … It’s very hard to take something [from boxing into MMA]. Yes maybe if you get some speed, have some clarity on your target, that will help you in MMA. But those are completely two different sports.”
Outside of his combat sports career, Ngannou has dealt with even bigger struggles. In April, the former heavyweight champ’s 15-month-old son, Kobe, passed away. His tragic loss sent ripple effects through the MMA and boxing worlds, with notable figures offering their support to him.
Ngannou saw the moment as a crossroads for him. He could let the moment stop him and hold him back, or he could use it to further fuel his purpose in life.
“I get to the point and I question myself, if I should continue or if I should just retire. But I didn’t want my son to be the reason I should do that. I decided that I would keep fighting for him.”
Ngannou’s new home as of last year, the PFL, is putting one of their best heavyweight talents up against him. Ferreira, a Brazilian vet who fought four times in 2023 to win PFL’s heavyweight title, earned his opportunity to challenge Ngannou earlier this year. In a champion versus champion clash a six months back, he put away Bellator titleholder Ryan Bader in 21 seconds to earn dibs on a fight against Ngannou.
“Francis [Ngannou] is an athlete and I’ve been following his career for a very long time,” Ferreira said on Thursday. “So, meeting him in person just came to solidify everything that I thought that I knew. He’s a big man, he has big power, and I’m excited for this fight.”
So much has changed for Ngannou in his fighting career: Pursuing new styles of combat sports, leaving the company where he had a world title and finding a new home in the PFL. However, in the next fight, he hopes to prove that some things have remained the same.
“I wouldn’t say my relationship with fighting has changed. I have the same relationship, and I’m going to prove it on October 19th.”
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