The Refined Impa Kasanganay

Since winning the Professional Fighters League light heavyweight title in 2023, Impa Kasanganay has tried to use his platform for positivity. From living in his car to winning the $1 million prize, Kasanganay’s story has inspired fans around the world. However, his message doesn’t end there.

When Kasanganay isn’t training in the cage, he’s sharpening his other many skills. Kasanganay believes you should try to improve yourself every day. Whether it be physically, emotionally or financially, self-refinement is the key.

“When you’re a professional, your standard should be refinery,” Kasanganay told Sherdog.com. “Be the best version of yourself, and that’s what I live by. I used to work in accounting and I’m still in business school, but I want to work in consulting. I want to challenge people to becoming their best selves”

Kasanganay believes in this mission so much that he has started his own company: Impa’s Refinery. Based in Miami, Kasangany started the brand as a way to serve as a life coach through martial arts and financial planning.

“It’s growing,” Kasangany said. “It’s something that I want to do for the rest of my life—to see people get better and show them what I use in the cage.”

Kasangany, who fights Jakob Nedoh in the PFL 5 co-feature this Friday at the Jon M. Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City, has been training steadily for the next round of the Professional Fighters League season. However, when he’s not in the gym building his skills, he’s building the company. Between the gym, classes and the fledgling business, Kasanganay’s free time is almost non-existent.

“I treat life like school, where everything is a different class,” he said. “I have a French tutor. In Miami, I’ve been learning Spanish because there’s many Spanish speakers and I want to respect what they do and it keeps me active. The same energy that you spend to go party and get drunk at the club can be used to make yourself better years down the line.”

Despite his packed schedule, Kasangany has gone to a Formula 1 race, a Carolina Panthers football game and taken a motorcycle road trip to clear his head after his win over Alex Polizzi in April. With a win over Nedoh, Kasangany will make it back into the playoffs and have the opportunity to defend his championship. Balancing a PFL title run with a growing business is not easy, but it’s the type of work that gets Kasangany up in the morning. He lives for challenges and he thrives on attitude. He plans to dominate the same way he dominates opponents.

“My attitude is who I am,” Kasangany said. “It has nothing to do with anything else. I think people won’t do things themselves, so they think nobody can. You just have to tell them respectfully to shut up and just move forward.”