Fighter sees himself facing Francis Ngannou after switching to MMA in just six weeks
A man who took less than two months to become an MMA fighter now sees himself potentially facing Francis Ngannou one day.
Patrick Brady, the owner of a successful renovation company, never had any plans of becoming a fighter for the better part of his life. Signing up for a charity boxing match in 2018 turned his life around. Being influenced by a fellow competitor, he took up MMA shortly afterwards.
Six weeks later, Brady competed in his first amateur MMA fight. Five years later, he is fighting for a title and a $1 million paycheck at the Professional Fighters League and hoping to face the former UFC heavyweight champion someday.
Speaking with SunSport, 'The Brick' touched upon how he unexpectedly got into MMA at the age of 34.
"I got into fighting on a whim, I took a boxing match - for a recovery-based fundraiser. And one of the boxers at the fundraiser also did MMA and he was saying how MMA fighters are tougher. So I jumped into MMA and it’s been no looking back since and I find myself at the highest level with the PFL at a late age."
Speaking of potentially facing PFL's biggest signing to date, Brady revealed that he has sparred with Francis Ngannou in the past. At PFL, he wants to face 'The Predator' and test himself against the very best.
"I know the PFL just recently signed Francis and I’ve been - I don’t know if you’d call it lucky enough - but I’ve been fortunate enough to spar with him a couple of rounds over at Xtreme Couture. That would be a fun fight for me, getting in there with him and just really finding out what you’re made of."
As per Sherdog, Brady fought his first amateur bout in October 2018, which he lost via unanimous decision. Following the defeat, he amassed four wins and one draw in the next five fights, finally turning pro in December 2021.
Brady has recently been signed by the PFL for the 2023 season. He will compete against Jordan Heiderman on the June 16 card at Overtime Elite Arena, Atlanta. He is undefeated in his professional fighting career with a spotless record of 5-0. Three of his five wins came by finishes.
Israel Adesanya is hopeful about seeing Francis Ngannou in the UFC again
It has become very apparent that Francis Ngannou and Dana White ended things on bitter terms.
Ngannou allegedly turned down a Brock Lesnar-esque money offer from the UFC. Just when everyone started to question his decision, he landed a massive contract with the PFL including a decision-making position.
His former boss publicly stated that Francis Ngannou's deal with the PFL 'made no sense.' White also dissed his attempts at stepping inside the boxing ring with one of the top heavyweights - Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, or Deontay Wilder.
However, Ngannou's close friend and fellow African-origin UFC champion Israel Adesanya is positive fans will see 'The Predator' back in the promotion.
"The story's not over yet. I think everyone needs to chill... Dana said some stuff in the past, 'Women would never fight in the UFC.' It's on video, look where we are now. 'Francis will never fight in the UFC again.' I think he might do what he does and come back and they'll pay him what he deserves, what he's earned because they f**ked him for a long time."
Fans surely hope that if Francis Ngannou is UFC-bound ever again, it happens before Jon Jones hangs up his fighting gloves for good.