Former UFC champion Francis Ngannou has already accomplished more than he ever thought possible. He won a UFC title, he boxed two of the greatest boxers in the modern era, and come Saturday, he may become the PFL champion. That's led many to wonder if the 38-year-old fighter might be making a career exit sooner rather than later.
In an interview with MMA Junkie ahead of his Oct. 19 return to MMA, Ngannou asserted that he was still healthy and in good shape.
“My body is holding up well,” Ngannou said. “Obviously I had a knee surgery, but that was over two years ago now. It took me quite a long time, over a year to really get back. But now I’m really strong. By the time I get back into the fight, I get very strong. I can kick. Even though kicking is not my cup of tea, I do kick.”
Ngannou also revealed that he plans to return to boxing at some point before putting combat sports in the rearview mirror for good.
“I have an appetite to go back into boxing,” Ngannou said. “For sure, I still have a couple fights in both left. I just turned 38, so I will say my retirement when I start getting around 41 or 42. It could be 40, but this is just in an exceptional case. This time I think I really have to enjoy my time inside the octagon and inside the ring, and then have my last dance and go home.”
Ngannou was reluctant to give an exact timetable for his departure but it certainly seems like it's not anytime soon.
“Heavyweights can go for a long time,” Ngannou said. “Even middleweight, I think Dan Henderson was 46 when he fought (Michael) Bisping the last time in London and that was in middleweight. Then Glover Teixeira was champion at 42. He was a light heavyweight. But the thing here, I just want to say I want to leave the sport before the sport leaves me. I would like to leave at the top of my game. We will see how it goes. You make plans, but then God has plans. We will see.”
Watch Ngannou vs. Ferreira on DAZN
Watch Francis Ngannou's return to the cage as he faces Renan Ferreira in the PFL Super Fights: Battle of the Giants this Saturday on DAZN Pay-Per-View.
The card also features Cris Cyborg against Larissa Pacheco for the women's featherweight world title.
The PPV is priced at £19.99 for UK viewers to watch on any device, including Smart TV's, game consoles, phones, tablets and PC's.
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Purchasing the PPV includes a seven-day free trial of all of DAZN's programming across a range of sports.
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- Jake Paul talks Jon Jones fighting the winner of Ngannou vs. Ferreira
- PFL announces launch of PFL Africa