Francis Ngannou says he considered retiring following the death of his son earlier this year but has chosen to fight on as it is “the best way of honouring him”.
Cameroon’s Ngannou, who was speaking at a news conference to promote his PFL heavyweight debut against Renan Ferreira on October 19, posted on X in April that his 15-month-old son Kobe had passed away.
The 37-year-old’s bout with Brazil’s Ferreira in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia marks his return to MMA and first fight since defeat by British boxer Anthony Joshua in March.
“Fighting for me is a lifestyle. I questioned myself if I should continue or retire, but I didn’t want my son to be the reason for me to do that,” said Ngannou.
"It’s become a new purpose for me. I decided to make a positive out of his 15 months of living. I want to use this as a motivation to keep going instead of quitting. I think this is the best way of honouring him."
Following the news conference Ngannou and Ferreira, both sporting sunglasses, faced off either side of YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul, who was a compere at the event.
Ngannou told Ferreira: “You’re going to face a real champion now," prompting laughter between the pair before they sized each other up.
Their fight is billed as the ‘Battle of the Giants’, with the winner receiving PFL’s newly established “super-fights championship belt”.
The co-main event pits long-time Bellator featherweight titleholder Cris Cyborg against PFL two-weight champion Larissa Pacheco.
The fight card in Saudi Arabia will be the latest in a string of high-profile sporting events to take place in the Kingdom.
But the country continues to face criticisms for using sport to divert attention away from its poor human rights record —a process known as sportswashing.
