Francis Zavier Ngannou[12][13] (born 5 September 1986)[14] is a Cameroonian and French[15] professional mixed martial artist and professional boxer who currently competes in the Heavyweight division of the Professional Fighters League (PFL), where he is the inaugural PFL Super Fights Heavyweight Champion.[16] He previously competed in the heavyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) from 2015 to 2022, where he was the reigning UFC Heavyweight Champion at the time of his departure from the promotion. Known for his punching power, Ngannou was widely viewed as the most destructive pure puncher in the UFC's heavyweight division;[17] he ended seven of his fourteen UFC fights by knockout before the two-minute mark in the first round. He is considered the lineal heavyweight champion in mixed martial arts.[18]
Early life and education
Ngannou was born and raised in the village of Batié, Cameroon.[19] He lived in poverty and had little formal education growing up.[20] Ngannou's parents divorced when he was six years old, and he was sent to live with his aunt. At 10 years old, Ngannou started working in a sand quarry in Batié because of a lack of funds.[21][22] As a youngster, he was approached by several gangs in his village to join them.[23] However, Ngannou refused and instead decided to use his father's negative reputation as a street fighter as motivation to do something positive and pursue boxing.[23]
At age 22, Ngannou began training in boxing, despite the initial reluctance of his family.[23] After training for a year, Ngannou stopped training due to an illness.[24] He did various odd jobs to make ends meet, until age 26 when he decided to head to Paris, France, to pursue professional boxing.[25] However upon reaching Europe, he was jailed for two months in Spain for illegally crossing the border.[26] After he reached Paris, he had no money, no friends, and no place to live.[20] After living homeless on the streets of Paris, Ngannou found his way to a boxing club where he met coach Didier Carmont (cousin of Francis Carmont) who was understanding towards his situation. Carmont convinced the gym to let him train at no cost, and introduced Ngannou to the sport of MMA. Additionally, Ngannou became a volunteer at Lo Chorba, a non-profit organization in Paris.[27] When his boxing gym closed for the summer, Lo Chorba's director Khater Yenbou introduced Ngannou to Fernand Lopez and the MMA factory.[28] Being a fan of Mike Tyson, Ngannou was originally interested in learning how to box but Lopez saw his potential in MMA and convinced him to try MMA instead.[25] Lopez gave Ngannou some MMA gear and allowed him to train and sleep at the gym for no cost thus starting Ngannou's MMA career.[25]
Reflecting on his journey across continents and his decision to become an MMA fighter, Ngannou said:[20][25]
When I started, I had nothing. Nothing. I needed everything. But when you start [to earn money], you starting collecting things: I want this, I want this, I want that. The purpose is not collecting things, though. The purpose is to do something great. Finish the dream you started.
I want to help my family, first, of course, but then I want to give opportunity to children in my country like me who have a dream to become a doctor or something. If I reach my dream, it will give me the opportunity to help those in my country who have their own dreams and nothing else to fulfill them.
I want to give some opportunity for children like me who dream of this sport and don't have an opportunity like me. The last time I was in Cameroon, I brought a lot of materials for boxing and MMA to open a gym. Now I just bought a big space to start the gym, as well.
A lot of children now in Cameroon, because of me, they have a dream. They say, 'I will be a champion in MMA. I will do boxing like Francis,' because they saw me when I was young. I didn't have anything. I didn't have any opportunity. And today, they see me, and they are dreaming. They are thinking that something is possible. Even when they are so poor, something is possible in life. ... It's not easy. It's so hard, but it's possible.
Professional mixed martial arts career
Early career
Ngannou started his MMA career in November 2013 and fought mostly in the French promotion 100% Fight, as well as other regional promotions in Europe.[29] He compiled a record of 5–1 before signing with the UFC.[30]
Ultimate Fighting Championship
Ngannou in 2017
Ngannou made his UFC debut against fellow newcomer Luis Henrique on 19 December 2015, at UFC on Fox 17.[31] He won the fight via knockout in the second round.[32]
Ngannou next faced UFC newcomer Curtis Blaydes on 10 April 2016, at UFC Fight Night 86.[33] He won the fight via TKO, due to doctor stoppage at the end of the second round.[34]
In his next bout, Ngannou faced another newcomer in Bojan Mihajlović on 23 July 2016, at UFC on Fox 20.[35] He won the fight via TKO in the first round.[36] Ngannou then faced Anthony Hamilton on 9 December 2016, at UFC Fight Night 102.[37] He won the fight by submission in the first round, and earned his first UFC Performance of the Night bonus.[38][39]
Ngannou faced Andrei Arlovski on 28 January 2017, at UFC on Fox 23.[40] He won the fight via TKO in the first round. The win also earned Ngannou his second Performance of the Night bonus.[41]
Ngannou was expected to face Junior dos Santos on 9 September 2017, at UFC 215.[42] However, on 18 August, Dos Santos was pulled from the match after being notified of a potential USADA violation.[43] In turn, Ngannou was removed from the card after promotion officials deemed that a suitable opponent could not be arranged.[44][45]
In 2017, he set the world record for the hardest punch ever recorded on the PowerKube, at 129,161 franklin (a unit used by the PowerKube that combines power and energy).[46][17][47]
In the highest profile fight of his career, Ngannou faced veteran Alistair Overeem on 2 December 2017, at UFC 218.[48] He won the fight via knockout in the first round.[49] This knockout has been labeled as one of the greatest and most brutal knockouts of all time.[50][51][52] Following the bout, Ngannou signed a new, eight-fight contract with the UFC.[53]
Ngannou faced Derrick Lewis on 7 July 2018, at UFC 226.[56] He lost the fight via unanimous decision. The fight was heavily criticized by the media and the fans for the lack of offence from both competitors[57][58][59][60] and was labeled as a "snoozefest".[61]
Ngannou faced Curtis Blaydes in a rematch on 24 November 2018, in the main event at UFC Fight Night 141[62] He won the fight via TKO early into the first round.[63] The win also earned him a Performance of the Night bonus.[64]
Ngannou headlined the UFC's inaugural event on ESPN, UFC on ESPN 1 against Cain Velasquez on 17 February 2019.[65] He won via knockout in the first round.[66]
Ngannou faced the Interim UFC Heavyweight ChampionCiryl Gane for his first title defense on 22 January 2022, at UFC 270.[80] He injured knee ligaments three and a half weeks before the fight.[81] Ngannou won the fight by unanimous decision, the first decision win of his career.[82]
Departure
On 14 January 2023, the UFC Heavyweight Championship was stripped from Ngannou after he and the UFC could not come to terms on a new contract. Ngannou's contract expired in mid-December, and after the two parties couldn't reach an agreement, the UFC
waived its one-year matching rights clause, making Ngannou an unrestricted free agent.[83] In an interview with Ariel Helwani, Ngannou stated that he had requested health insurance, the ability to have sponsorships for all UFC fighters, and to have a fighter advocate present during all fighter contract negotiations. When his requests were denied, Ngannou chose not to re-sign with the UFC,[84] making him the first reigning champion to leave the UFC since B.J. Penn in 2004.[85]
After Ngannou's departure from the UFC, he openly admitted to wanting to start a boxing career and targeted boxing matches with both Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury.[86]
Professional Fighters League
On 16 May 2023, it was announced that Ngannou had signed a multi-fight deal with the Professional Fighters League (PFL).[16][87] He will be competing in their pay-per-view "super fight" division, while still being free to compete in other sports such as boxing.[88] Ngannou also negotiated on behalf of his opponents, guaranteeing them to be paid at least $2 million.[89][90] He will also be a part of PFL's global advisory board, meant to advocate for fighters' interests, and an equity owner and chairman of the upcoming PFL Africa league.[90][91] Ngannou's PFL contract has been called a historic moment for the sport,[92] with Daniel Cormier saying it sets "a new standard for what is out there in the [MMA] free-agent market."[93] John S. Nash of Bloody Elbow and Alex Pattle of The Independent each referred to a different aspect of the deal as "unprecedented".[88][89]
On 22 February 2024, it was announced that Ngannou would make his MMA return against the winner of Renan Ferreira vs Ryan Bader heavyweight bout at PFL vs. Bellator on 24 February 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.[94][95]
Ngannou took on the undefeated WBC and Lineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury in a professional boxing match billed as "Battle of the Baddest" on 28 October 2023, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.[98] Ngannou was able to knock down Fury in the third round, taking the fight all the way to the scorecards, in which the judges awarded Fury the victory in a controversial split decision (95–94, 96–93, 94–95).[99][100] According to CompuBox, Fury outlanded Ngannou 71 to 59 in total punches, while Ngannou outlanded Fury 37 to 32 in power punches.[101][102]
As a result of his strong performance against Fury, Ngannou was ranked #10 by the WBC.[103]Mauricio Sulaiman, President of the WBC, said "the ranking of Ngannou was perfectly supported by the WBC rules which is clear in the criteria from rankings that we consider the activity of the fighter in other contact sports."[104]
Ngannou speaks Ngemba, French, and English.[22][107][108] He learned English after joining the UFC.[109]
On April 29, 2024, Ngannou announced that his 15-month-old son Kobe had died.[110][111][112][113] The cause of death was a brain malformation.[114]
Philanthropy
The Francis Ngannou Foundation, initially run solely on Ngannou's personal funds and later combining that with donations, runs the first MMA gym in Cameroon, aiming to offer facilities for young people to have a place to train. It also donates educational materials to Cameroonian children and schools, including setting up computer labs in underserved villages.[115][116] In January 2024 the foundation claimed to have 26,000 beneficiaries.[117]
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