Francis Ngannou will make his long awaited return to the cage, as he steps into the PFL SmartCage against 2023 PFL Heavyweight champion Renan Ferreira at ‘Battle Of The Giants: Brace For Impact’.
The heavyweights will headline the inaugural PFL Super Fights show on October 19, with an equally exciting co-main event between Cris ‘Cyborg’ and Larissa Pacheco.
The fight night will see Ngannou return to the cage for the first time in over two years, having explored the world of boxing and competed against Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua within the last 12 months.
The super fight will also see ‘The Predator’ step inside of the Smart Cage, as an athlete, for the first time. When he signed with the promotion, it was also revealed that Ngannou would serve as the chairman and equity owner of PFL Africa, as the Professional Fighters League continue to expand into new territories.
Ferreira, who is nominated for the 2024 World MMA Awards’ Charles Lewis Fighter Of The Year, will be looking to add another huge scalp to his resume following his 21 second stoppage against Bellator Heavyweight champion Ryan Bader at PFL vs Bellator: Champs card.
Speaking about the monumental card, PFL CEO, Peter Murray, said:
“The Professional Fighters League is excited to announce the highly anticipated return of superstar, undisputed Heavyweight Champion, Francis Ngannou, to MMA in The Battle of the Giants against the most-feared Heavyweight, 6-foot-8 2023 PFL Heavyweight Champion Renan Ferreira in the biggest world title fight of the year,
“On October 19 live on ESPN+ in the U.S. and DAZN worldwide, MMA fans around the world will witness a true battle of the greatest fighters on the planet competing for the PFL Super Fights Championship Belts."
Ahead of the contest, Ngannou said:
“Renan is a great fighter; I have been watching him for years.
“I have been studying him for years, in fact I’ve been telling people to watch this guy. He’s quite unique, he’s athletic, fast, his size doesn’t impress me as much as his skill.”
Since signing with the PFL back in 2021, ‘Problema’ has amassed 7-1-0-3 record. In his last four bouts, Ferreira has stopped all four opponents by way of strikes.
At the time of writing, the destination for the Super Fight PPV card has not been announced.
