Francis Ngannou will make his PFL debut this October when the former UFC heavyweight champion competes on pay-per-view.
The PFL issued a press release announcing that Ngannou, promoted as the Undisputed Heavyweight Champion, will fight Renan Ferreira on October 19 on ESPN+ and DAZN pay-per-view.
Ngannou (17-3) last competed in MMA at UFC 270 in January 2022 where he defeated Ciryl Gane by unanimous decision and has not lost since July 2018.
Ngannou’s contract with the UFC elapsed due to the “sunset clause” in his deal and he left the promotion as its heavyweight champion. Jon Jones defeated Ciryl Gane in March 2023 to win the vacant championship.
Since his last MMA fight, Ngannou had two professional boxing fights where he lost to Tyson Fury by split decision in October 2023 but managed to knock down the former champion. He returned this past March and was knocked out by Anthony Joshua in the second round of their contest. Both fights were staged in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, representing gigantic paydays for Ngannou.
Ngannou suffered a tragedy earlier this year with the sudden passing of his fifteen-month-old son, Kobe, which the fighter recently addressed on The Joe Rogan Experience.
Ferreira (13, 3 NC) has won his last four fights in the organization and became the 2023 PFL Heavyweight Champion by defeating Denis Goltsov last November with a TKO victory. Ferreira stopped Ryan Bader this past February in a fight between the PFL and Bellator heavyweight champions.
The pay-per-view card, which doesn’t list a location, will include Cris “Cyborg” competing against Larissa Pacheco in the co-main event.
Cyborg (24-2, 1 NC) will be 40 years old by the time of the fight and will make her PFL debut after six fights for Bellator where she remains its featherweight champion.
Pacheco (23-4) is on a ten-fight winning streak in the PFL and won the featherweight tournament in 2022 & 2023 including a win against career rival Kayla Harrison in November 2022 by decision.
The pay-per-view is being marketed as “Battle of the Giants: Brace for Impact” and will be available on pay-per-view in the U.S. through ESPN+ and on DAZN pay-per-view worldwide.
