Francis Ngannou has ‘bigger purpose than ever’ to fight for late son Kobe

Former UFC heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou labels the death of his son Kobe as motivation to keep fighting in his memory.

Francis Ngannou has ‘bigger purpose than ever’ to fight for late son Kobe

Francis Ngannou on son Kobe's death (Image via Imago)

Francis Ngannou is about to make a comeback and this time he has more motivation than ever before. After tragically losing his son Kobe earlier this year, the former UFC champion has decided to dedicate the rest of his fighting career to his name. Here is what happened:

Francis Ngannou opened up about the heartbreaking loss of his 15-month-old son, Kobe. Ngannou recently did an interview with Sky Sports Boxing. There he revealed that Kobe passing away earlier this year was a tragedy that has deeply affected him.

It has been by far my hardest ship in life the days I lost my son and then, you know, for some time I felt like I didn’t even have to do this or questioning about whether I should do it, fight again or something.
Francis Ngannou on Sky Sports Boxing

The former UFC champion described feeling “powerless” and “vulnerable,” struggling with an overwhelming sense of grief and questioning the purpose of life. Despite this, Ngannou has decided to return to MMA, not for personal achievement but to honor his son’s memory.

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He shared that his son was now his biggest motivation, driving him to continue fighting. He acknowledged that the past few months have been the hardest of his life, but ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ is determined to push forward and do something positive in Kobe’s memory. Ngannou is set to make his MMA comeback against Renan Ferreira in the Professional Fighters League (PFL) this October.

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Francis Ngannou’s upcoming PFL debut against Renan Ferreira

Francis Ngannou is set to make his highly anticipated Professional Fighters League (PFL) debut this October. ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ will feature in a headline event in Saudi Arabia against Renan Ferreira. This fight marks Ngannou’s return to mixed martial arts after two high-profile boxing matches. The former UFC champion traded punches with boxing icons Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. 

Francis Ngannou
Francis Ngannou (via Imago)

Although he came up short in both boxing bouts, Ngannou knocked down Fury and gained valuable experience. It will be interesting to see how Ngannou integrates his experience from the boxing ring into the octagon. Especially, after having extensively trained under boxing legend Mike Tyson‘s guidance.

This PFL event was marketed as “Battle of the Giants: Brace for Impact”. It is expected to be a significant pay-per-view event, available on ESPN+ in the U.S. and DAZN globally. The co-main event will feature a women’s featherweight clash between Cris Cyborg and Larissa Pacheco, adding more star power to the card.

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