“I don’t boast about it!” Impa Kasanganay reveals training with world champions; unbothered by opponent Johnny Eblen training with former UFC champion

Facing undefeated Johnny Eblen, Impa Kasanganay remains confident and thankful for his supportive team, focusing on his strengths and the opportunity at the upcoming PFL vs Bellator event.

“I don’t boast about it!” Impa Kasanganay reveals training with world champions; unbothered by opponent Johnny Eblen training with former UFC champion

Impa Kasanganay unbothered by Johnny Eblen training with Sean Strickland (Image via: IMAGO)

Impa Kasanganay was one of the feel-good stories in MMA in 2023. The former UFC fighter had a resurgent career with PFL, where he became the PFL light heavyweight champion and bagged $1 million in prize money. Soon after his victory, PFL acquired Bellator, which paved the way for the upcoming PFL vs Bellator PPV. Kasanganay is in the co-main event of the PPV, and his opponent is Bellator middleweight champion Johnny Eblen.

Eblen is undefeated in professional MMA, and many consider him the best fighter outside the UFC. Moreover, some even consider him the best middleweight, irrespective of promotion. Eblen is also close with former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland. The duo are training partners as they both help each other. Nonetheless, it has not bothered Kasanganay. He spoke about it in his interview with Ajinkya Aswale of FirstSportz. This is what he said.

I train with men who have been great champions as well, you know. Like, I don't boast about it, I don't brag about it. I'm just very, very grateful for the team that I have, and I'm blessed.
Impa Kasanganay via FirstSportz
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Eblen is not the only fighter on Kasanganay’s radar. He has intentions to fight former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou. Even though Ngannou is with the PFL, his present concentration is on boxing. Nonetheless, he will make his PFL debut in 2024, as he had promised it. Kasanganay had already called for a fight with Ngannou, and a victory against Eblen could help get it.

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Kasanganay trains at Kill Cliff MMA in Florida, whereas Eblen trains at American Top Team in the same state. The two gyms are among the best gyms in Florida. Like Eblen, who also trains at Extreme Couture in Las Vegas in addition to ATT, Kasanganay also has championship-level fighters to train with at Kill Cliff. Kamaru Usman, Shavkat Rakhmonov, Michael Chandler, and Jason Jackson, among others, train at Kill Cliff.

Winner of Johnny Eblen vs Impa Kasanganay to get a special belt at PFL vs Bellator PPV event

The PFL has already promoted their upcoming PPV as a battle between champions. However, only two titles are on the line at the PPV. The main event between Renan Ferreira and Ryan Bader and the co-main event between Johnny Eblen and Impa Kasanganay are those fights. PFL has made a customized belt for the winner of the aforementioned two bouts.

The belt for the winners of the main and co-main event of PFL vs Bellator
The belt for the winners of the main and co-main event of PFL vs Bellator (Image via: X)

The belt has already attracted attention from fans and fighters. It is considerably heavier than other belts in major promotions. Johnny Eblen has already held it and has revealed his impression of the belt. Eblen has a penchant for an expensive lifestyle, as evidenced by his spending of $85K on a popular OnlyFans model.

The PFL initially planned more title fights at the upcoming PPV. However, PFL welterweight champion Magomed Magomedkerimov had to withdraw due to injury. So was the case for PFL featherweight champion Jesus Pineda.

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