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- Francis Ngannou may be returning to mixed martial arts soon.
- He told Joe Rogan on Tuesday that he'll face Brazilian KO artist Renan Ferreira in a heavyweight showdown at PFL MMA.
- The fight is scheduled for October in Saudi Arabia, but nothing has been officially confirmed by the PFL yet.
Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou has announced his return to mixed martial arts and revealed the name of his opponent.
During a new episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, Ngannou revealed he's considering returning inside the cage to make his PFL MMA debut later this year, and is planning a heavyweight showdown against the bigger, more powerful Brazilian.
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Francis Ngannou announces MMA return
Ngannou signed with PFL over a year ago and is set to make his promotional debut later this year.
Following brief cameos at the top of boxing's heavyweight division against the likes of Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, Francis Ngannou is looking to return to the mixed martial arts cage in the near future and has already revealed a planned date and opponent.
A few months after his contract with UFC expired in mid-December 2022, Ngannou signed with PFL, one of UFC's rivals, in a huge deal that shocked the MMA world. After lengthy contract negotiations between him and UFC, the two sides were unable to reach an agreement, leading UFC to strip “The Predator” of his undisputed UFC heavyweight championship after just his first title defense.
Ngannou's signing with the PFL was announced over a year ago, but the Cameroonian is yet to step inside an MMA cage since his win over Cyril Gane at UFC 270 in January 2022. However, that could soon change as Ngannou has revealed he is aiming to make his return to MMA this October against 2023 PFL heavyweight tournament winner Renan Ferreira.
While there has been no official announcement or confirmation yet, Ngannou claims the PFL is working to make the bout happen in Saudi Arabia this October. It will be a familiar venue for Ngannou, as his last two boxing bouts took place at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh. Like the UFC, the PFL also has close ties with Saudi Arabia, with the Saudi PIF making a $110 million minority investment in the PFL in November 2023.
Who is Renan Ferreira?
The only opponent on the list of Francis Ngannou's potential return to MMA is Renan Ferreira, who won the PFL's 2023 heavyweight tournament and is unbeaten inside the cage in two years.
The Brazilian stands at a whopping 6'8″ but is incredibly mobile for his size and is also a knockout artist, with 11 of his 13 professional MMA wins coming by way of knockout.
Though he doesn't have the same name recognition as recent opponents Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, Ferreira will pose the toughest test of Ngannou's MMA career, especially after more than two-and-a-half years outside the cage.
