PFL are going big as they head to Saudi Arabia for the MMA return of Francis Ngannou after almost three years.
The hard-hitting heavyweight is still the lineal champion of the UFC, having never lost his belt before leaving the promotion in 2022. And after two massive-money boxing fights with champions Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, he returns to the cage on October 19.
Ngannou will headline the ‘Battle of the Giants’ against massive 6’8 Renan Ferreira on a stacked card that also features the legendary Cris Cyborg. Ferreira won last year’s PFL Global Season, and proceeded to viciously knock out Bellator champion Ryan Bader at their Super Fight event back in February.
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Francis Ngannou is still the lineal heavyweight champion of MMA
Since leaving the UFC, Francis Ngannou’s legacy has only continued to grow even as he remained out of the MMA cage. He inked an historic deal with PFL that saw him confirm his return to action as well as launching an operation in Africa, all while boxing with some of the sport’s biggest names.
He famously dropped then-heavyweight champion Tyson Fury in a tight split decision loss which many fans felt he did enough to win. And despite losing by knockout to Anthony Joshua a few months later, he remains the lineal MMA champion of the world.
And perhaps what makes his situation even more enviable is the confusion surrounding the UFC’s heavyweight division. After Ngannou had already defended against Ciryl Gane, Jon Jones ended up beating the Frenchman to pick up the vacant belt in March of last year.
But his first defence against Stipe Miocic in November was cancelled due to a torn pectoral muscle, meaning an interim champion was installed when Tom Aspinall knocked out Sergei Pavlovich. The Brit has even defended that belt, but now Jones will face Miocic instead at UFC 309.
Peter Murray details how Francis Ngannou’s MMA return is biggest fight of 2024
All of this build-up makes for an exciting main event, but PFL have also stacked the main card with some major names. The co-main sees women’s MMA icon Cris Cyborg take on two-weight PFL champion Larissa Pacheco.
There is also a Bellator middleweight title rematch between Fabian Edwards and champion Johnny Eblen, as well as a showcase bout between AJ McKee and top prospect Paul Hughes. Murray believes that all of this combined makes for an event bigger than any other this year.
“The fans have spoken on this,” he explained in an exclusive chat with Bloody Elbow. “We support it and we’re staging Francis’ return to MMA and it’s not a tune-up, he’s going against one of the best heavyweight MMA fighters in the world in Renan.
“Nobody would dispute that, Renan is a dangerous man and Francis, the predator, is in Paris training and this is very important for Francis. Just Renan’s sheer height and physique, his incredible smile and the fact he’s as warm of a human as he is scary as a fighter.
“He is now showing us and the world what he can do in the cage. It’s early days in his career where he continues to get better and this fight will make him better no matter the outcome, but that being said he’s here to win and he’s working differently to any of his other fights.”
As for Cyborg and the rest of the card, Murray added: “These three five rounds are going to be nothing short of amazing. Francis and Cris are the icons, and Renan and Larissa are about the next generation and making their mark now.
“This has all the makings of a super stacked card, we’ve added to the mix Eblen vs Edwards for the Bellator middleweight title. Then we kick off the pay-per-view with AJ McKee vs Paul Hughes who is on a run out of Ireland and going against one of the best lightweights on the planet, if not the best.”
Peter Murray brands ‘Battle of the Giants’ a mega event, bigger than UFC 306
PFL co-founder Donn Davis made headlines in recent weeks when he made the bold claim that PFL were due to spend more on their big Saudi Arabian pay-per-view than UFC 306. The massive event at Sphere cost Dana White more than $20million to stage, with the assistance of boxing boss Turki Alalsheikh.
This event will also have the benefit of Saudi Arabian investment, with Murray telling Bloody Elbow: “This is a mega event. It’s by far the biggest event in the PFL’s history in terms of spectacle and starpower with a stacked card.
“No better place to put a mega event of this stature than in Riyadh. So on October 19 with the Battle of the Giants, we’ll present the absolute biggest and most impactful event in the company’s history and the biggest event in MMA on 2024. The fans have spoken on that one, it’s the biggest show of the year.”