Francis Ngannou recently shared his thoughts on a possible return to MMA before retiring. His last bout in the UFC octagon was in January 2022 at UFC 270. He defeated Ciryl Gane in that match, defending and unifying the Heavyweight title. Since then, he has had knee surgery, began a recovery journey, left the promotion and entered the boxing world. He faced WBC Heavyweight Champion Tyson Fury in his very first boxing match.
After a notable boxing debut, where he knocked down “The Gypsy King” but suffered a controversial split decision loss, the Cameroonian has secured another significant fight. During an official announcement on January 15, Ngannou confirmed a match against two-time former heavyweight boxing champion Anthony Joshua on March 8 in Saudi Arabia.
The former UFC champion about his desire to return to MMA
Despite his interest in boxing, “The Predator” expressed his desire to make an anticipated return to MMA, potentially setting the stage for an undisputed title fight. During an interview with DAZN, Ngannou shared his desire to return to MMA.
“At this point, I’m not done with MMA. I can tell you that because I still believe there are still some great fights out there that I can still offer the fans. My MMA fans were my base, who also helped me get to this position, so I’m still thinking about how to work with that community,” said the former UFC Champion.
The 37-year-old joined the PFL last year and signed an exclusive agreement that ties him to PFL pay-per-view events. However, he retains the freedom to pursue a separate contract in professional boxing. As part of the deal, he takes on the role of executive and equity owner of PFL Africa, an upcoming regional league set to debut in 2025. Additionally, he held a position on PFL’s Global Advisory Board.
Ngannou issued threats to Joshua
Francis has issued some warnings to Anthony Joshua in anticipation of their highly anticipated clash. He said, ”If I catch him, he’s going to sleep.” Francis also stated that this is the heavyweight division and everyone is pretty strong, so if you get hit in the right position, you might wake up somewhere else. Ngannou also previously stated that he believes Joshua is much easier to beat than Fury and showed confidence for this showdown.
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