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PFL Champion Francis Ngannou Reveals Startling Realization After Tragedy

PFL heavyweight champ Francis Ngannou opens up on his mindset and toughness after a successful MMA return.

Zain Bando

Cooper Neill/Getty Images)

PFL heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou was anything but fearless after finishing Renan Ferreira via TKO Saturday afternoon.

Coming off the death of his 15-month-old son, Ngannou opened up on what the last several months have been like while preparing for his MMA return. After the win, Ngannou said he came to a startling realization about his mindset, fighting future and trying to live through his son's memory.

"I recently just found out that I wasn’t tough.” Ngannou told reporters. "You kind of ask yourself, ‘Is this ever gonna be over?’. You think it might never be over; you just may as well learn how to live with it… I don’t think a lifetime would be enough to grieve.”

Ngannou had little to no issues defeating Ferreira. It was his first MMA fight since Jan. 2022 when he was the UFC heavyweight champion. The victory was Ngannou's seventh in a row dating back to July 2018. Notable wins in that stretch include former heavyweight champions Stipe Miocic, Junior dos Santos and Cain Velasquez, along with Ciryl Gane and Curtis Blaydes. The victory against Gane was his last in the UFC, as the pair unified the belts in the midst of Ngannou's contract dispute with the promotion.

Ngannou bet on himself while taking a dive into the boxing scene with bouts against former undisputed champion Tyson Fury and fellow British future Hall of Famer Anthony Joshua. Despite going 0-2, Ngannou took Fury the distance, including nearly pulling off the upset.

Whether Ngannou is the best heavyweight in the sport is up for debate. However, what is known is that heavyweight MMA is back to normalcy with Ngannou back in the fold. Who Ngannou fights next is unknown, but he enjoys the fruitful labor of getting recognized in the same conversation as Jon Jones, Miocic and Tom Aspinall as the four best in the division.

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Zain Bando
ZAIN BANDO

Zain Bando is a writer for MMA Knockout, part of the Sports Illustrated/Minute Media umbrella. He has covered combat sports since 2019 for notable outlets BJPenn.com and FanSided MMA. He also co-hosts a podcast called "The MMA Outsiders," part of the Empty The Bench Podcast Network, which airs Tuesday nights at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT. A Chicago suburban native, Bando has been enthralled with MMA since 2006 and has been fortunate to attend some of the most high-profile events in the sport's history, both as a fan and media member, including UFC 264, Bellator 297 and Kayla Harrison's PFL MMA debut. He is excited to take the next step in his combat sports writing journey and looks forward to continuing his following of the fight game for years to come. Bando can be reached via email at zainbando99@gmail.com or by social media @zainbando99

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