Opinion: No Doubting Francis Ngannou’s Identity

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Francis Ngannou returned to an MMA cage for the first time in nearly three years and made his long-awaited Professional Fighters League debut when he headlined the PFL Super Fights “Battle of the Giants: Brace for Impact” pay-per-view on Oct. 19 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. While the final result—a first-round technical knockout of Renan Ferreira—was not a surprise on paper, the way Ngannou got there was a bit startling. Rather than blasting Ferreira with his improved boxing, Ngannou exhibited definitive improvement in his mixing of the martial arts. The former Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight titleholder landed some heavy leg kicks before executing an exceptionally timed blast double-leg that easily managed to put Ferreira on his back. Despite being 38 years old, it appears Ngannou is not done evolving as a fighter.

In the process, Ngannou reminded the world that he remains the lineal UFC heavyweight champion. While he may no longer hold the actual title at this point, Ngannou never lost the belt; he relinquished it when the UFC let him out of his contract in 2023. Jon Jones currently holds the UFC heavyweight championship but never took the belt from its previous owner in the traditional sense. Because Ngannou had been away from the MMA scene for so long, I had forgotten just how much I would have loved to have seen a showdown between “The Predator” and Jones.

I’m not saying Ngannou made a mistake leaving the UFC. Knowing he had certain financial and professional goals the company refused to help him meet, I can’t blame him for jumping ship to the PFL. Many in his situation would have done the same. Given the financial windfall Ngannou reaped in his boxing matches with Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, I seriously doubt he regrets his decision. Still, from the selfish perspective of an MMA fan, I very much wish I could see Ngannou square off not just with Jones but Tom Aspinall, too. We’ve all longed for a heavyweight championship fight between Jones and Aspinall to determine the identity of the best heavyweight in the world, but there’s a good chance we’ve all been barking up the wrong tree.

I’ve heard the arguments that Jones would be able to do to Ngannou that he did to Ciryl Gane at UFC 285. I will acknowledge that sounds like a very plausible possibility. However, there’s a reason we make these fights happen: We don’t truly know how it plays out until we see it. Go back and take a look at how many people thought Matt Serra would knock Georges St. Pierre silly at UFC 69 or those who thought Holly Holm would bring a sudden end to the Ronda Rousey era. Yet, that’s exactly what happened.

Ngannou showing a few more wrinkles in his game makes the idea of seeing him against either Jones or Aspinall that much more intriguing. He wouldn’t have an advantage on the mat over Jones or Aspinall, but his natural strength and athleticism, when coupled with a continually developing wrestling game, makes the likelihood of his being completely dominated in that aspect less likely. While Jones and Aspinall would appear to be more versatile strikers, no one doubts that Ngannou could turn out their lights if he landed a clean hook. Given that the current PFL superfights heavyweight champion has spent a considerable amount of time sharpening his boxing—enough to floor Fury—that would appear to be a distinct possibility.

What are the chances of Ngannou fighting either Jones or Aspinall? Slim to none. Ngannou isn’t about to re-sign with the UFC, and there’s even less of a chance that Jones or Aspinall moves over to the PFL. As for cross-promotion, the UFC has traveled that road before, but that was over two decades ago when it got burned by Pride Fighting Championships. The UFC sent Chuck Liddell and Ricco Rodriguez to compete in Pride events. The Japan-based organization was supposed to send over Kazushi Sakuraba in return but never followed through, burning UFC President Dana White and his company in the process. Since then, White has sworn off cross promoting in MMA, with the only exception being when Ed Herman made a cameo appearance in Strikeforce when it was under the Zuffa umbrella as the UFC’s sister organization. Given that it came under the same ownership, I’m not sure it counts as cross promotion.

The bottom line? Ngannou did what he needed to do. He made a dominant return and reminded us all of his world-class capabilities. He even showed some wrinkles we weren’t sure existed prior to the contest with Ferreira. Perhaps most importantly from a personal standpoint, he appeared to have a massive weight lifted off his shoulders in light of the death of his infant son, Kobe, earlier this year. Ngannou finds himself back on the MMA radar and in a positive light.

At this point, the best thing the PFL can do is boast that it has the real heavyweight champion of the world. Until someone defeats Ngannou, it’s hard to argue. Perhaps if the PFL yells and screams about it loud enough, the UFC might actually consider something fans have long desired and look into some cross-promotion. After all, White wasn’t as adamantly opposed to the idea when it was presented to him at a press conference after UFC 303, showing respect to Turki Al-Sheikh—an influential sports figure in Saudi Arabia. Remember, the Saudis have a minority ownership stake in the PFL. With that said, it’s still a longshot, perhaps a one-in-a-million shot. But as Lloyd Christmas once said, “So you’re telling me there’s a chance.”