Francis Ngannou has done things his way in his combat sports career.
Despite all the success the Cameroon native has had, that doesn’t mean it has come easily, especially in recent years. Ngannou, 37, achieved a dream when he scored redemption against Stipe Miocic via a second round knockout to become the new Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight champion in March 2021. Since then, he’s moved on to join Professional Fighters League (PFL) and kicked off his professional boxing career.
“The Predator’s” debut bout opposite Tyson Fury set him up for life financially this past October 2023. Regardless of the split decision defeat (watch highlights), Ngannou is back to take on Anthony Joshua tomorrow night (Fri., March 8, 2024). As for his last mixed martial arts (MMA) appearance, that came opposite France’s Ciryl Gane, whom he defeated by unanimous decision in January 2022 (watch highlights). Ultimately, the road to the fight required some assistance from a friend and fellow champion as Ngannou stood his ground for what he wanted moving forward.
“He knew a lot about stuff I turned down from the UFC during negotiation,” Ngannou said on Pound 4 Pound. “Even my last fight in the UFC, you know I took $600,000 for my last fight in the UFC as opposed to $5 million that they were offering for the same fight. I was like, ‘Bro.’ And, I was broke, at the time I owe [Kamaru] Usman, I owe him $200,000.
“I had a goal, I had my own way, I wanted something, and it couldn’t be delivered,” he continued. “I couldn’t sell out what I wanted just because of more money. Obviously, I needed that money, I had never had that amount of money.”
Ngannou and his fellow former UFC champion at Welterweight, Usman, developed a strong relationship during their rises to divisional supremacy thanks to their African heritages. Nigeria’s Usman along with Israel Adesanya at Middleweight once joined Ngannou as the power trio of MMA and appeared to be on track as the catalysts for the first UFC event in Africa. The latter has yet to come to fruition, but one of Ngannou’s roles with PFL includes handling its introduction into the African market where an eventual event will be held.