This weekend, Francis Ngannou finally returns to MMA action in the main event of PFL: Super Fights series against 6’ 8” juggernaut Renan Ferreira, in a fight that’s been billed by the promotion as one to crown the ‘best heavyweight in the world’.
Unsurprisingly, such promotion hasn’t sat too well with the consensus best heavyweight on the planet, UFC interim champion Tom Aspinall, who had some choice words about Renan Ferreira’s place among the elite.
Tom Aspinall discredits Francis Ngannou’s comeback fight opponent
Francis Ngannou returns to the realm of Mixed Martial Arts this weekend in a highly anticipated championship fight against a man who towers over ‘The Predator’, Brazilian juggernaut Renan Ferreira.
Speaking with Ariel Helwani, UFC interim champion Tom Aspinall would state that whilst he holds Ngannou in high regard, the upcoming main event of the PFL: Super Fights series is far from a contest between the two best heavyweights in the world.
“I have a lot of respect for Francis, and I really appreciate his story but it’s hard to debate right now [because] the guy he’s fighting is not elite and the guys he’ll be fighting in the future aren’t elite – it’s as simple as that, these aren’t the best guys in the world.
“The guy he’s fighting fought a friend of mine, a training partner of mine [called] Ante Delija last year and Ante just destroyed him in a minute or two. Just took him down, ground-and-pound, and stopped him in a minute; and now this guy’s fighting Francis Ngannou?
Aspinall, who later confirmed that he’ll be the backup fighter for the upcoming UFC title showdown in November, argued that despite all of Renan Ferreira’s physical attributes, he certainly isn’t one of the greatest heavyweights out there.
“The guy isn’t elite; yeah, he’s big, yeah, he’s powerful, and yeah, he can knock you out but he’s not an elite heavyweight… I’m not disrespecting him, but the elite guys aren’t in PFL, the elite guys are in the UFC.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for Francis and his story and what he’s done in the sport, but it’s difficult to say that he’s the best heavyweight in the world when he isn’t fighting elite guys right now,” noted the British sensation.
“The guy’s nowhere near the Top 10, yeah, he’s a big dude and an athletic guy but he’s not a top 10 guy yet.”
Just a few hours later an in an exclusive interview with Bloody Elbow, Francis Ngannou would hit back at Aspinall’s comments in a big way.
Tom Aspinall confirms he’s the backup fighter for UFC 309 title fight
If the best heavyweight in the world isn’t crowned at PFL: Super Fights, there’s another enormous fight set to go down just a few weeks later at Madison Square Garden which could.
Luckily, Aspinall would also confirm that he will be weighing in as the backup fighter on November 16 for if either Stipe Miocic or Jon Jones fails to make the walk.
“Yes, it is official; Dana announced it a while ago now, but I didn’t actually hear anything from the UFC, but now we’ve actually spoken and everything’s going good.
“We’ve come to an agreement about it, we know what’s happening going forward, we’ve got plans, future fight plans and everything is right there.
“It’s going to be a good couple of years,” celebrated Aspinall, before teasing that there could be other options available, should one or both of the UFC 309 main eventers walk away from the sport.
“Big plans, big, massive plans – I cannot lay [them] out, you know I would if I could… We’ve got other options in place too if one guy wants to retire, one guy wants to continue, if both guys want to retire, we’ve got all bases covered.”
- WOW: Francis Ngannou defends Jon Jones amid backlash for ‘ducking’ interim UFC champion Tom Aspinall