"He's a man, I'm another one" - Francis Ngannou revisits "locker room" memory from before UFC debut in 2015
Combat sports star Francis Ngannou has harked back to an incident that transpired at the beginning of his run in the UFC, highlighting his pre-fight mental preparation.
As an adult, the Cameroon-born athlete moved to Europe to become a boxing world champion. Nevertheless, at that time, he received greater economic benefits in MMA and continued to pursue a career in that sport instead.
Francis Ngannou's UFC debut came against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and grappling stalwart, Luis Henrique, at UFC on Fox: dos Anjos vs. Cowboy 2 in December 2015. Ngannou ended up beating Henrique via second-round KO.
In the ensuing years, Ngannou won the UFC heavyweight title. Besides, in January 2023, he parted ways with the UFC and joined the PFL. The latter organization permitted him to compete in both MMA and boxing. He made his boxing debut in October 2023, losing a closely-contested matchup against boxing great Tyson Fury via split decision.
Speaking to Sky Sports Boxing, Ngannou (17-3 MMA, 0-1 boxing) has now drawn parallels between his current standing in boxing and the beginning of his UFC career. He explained that akin to how many are now underestimating his boxing prowess, they'd similarly downplayed his MMA skills when he joined the UFC.
Francis Ngannou indicated that while he was "in the locker room" before his fight against Henrique, he wasn't even sure about all the rules and didn't want to continue competing in MMA. 'The Predator' wanted to box instead.
Meanwhile, some people were waxing lyrical about his opponent's stellar BJJ, overall grappling, and MMA skills. Regardless, he believed in himself and beat Henrique. Revisiting the experience, Ngannou stated:
"I mean, in order to convince myself, I have to take my pride, then look at myself. I'm like, 'I don't care whatever you say about him. He might be doing tai chi or whatever you want. At the end of the day, he's a man, I'm another one. We're going to check it out. I had to have that mindset, otherwise I would have just turned around. I have nothing with a guy that was Olympic this, that..."
He further added:
"So, then, he walks out and those kind of things let you understand that most of the time, the fight is in our head. It's not about the techniques. It's not about this. I have seen the best technician in the combat sport that are not really a great fighter because they don't really have a fighting in them. You can have all the techniques, but if you don't have fighting in you, it's going to be hard for you."
Check out Ngannou's comments below (8:02):
Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou: 'The Predator' eyes maiden boxing win and potential title shot
Former undisputed UFC heavyweight champion and current PFL star Francis Ngannou is scheduled to face former unified boxing heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua (27-3 boxing) next. The Joshua-Ngannou showdown will headline a much-awaited boxing fight card at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on March 8, 2024.
Francis Ngannou's incredible performance against Tyson Fury notwithstanding, the fact remains that he's yet to officially secure a victory in the sport of professional boxing. Nevertheless, by defeating Joshua, Ngannou would finally notch a boxing win.
Moreover, by besting Joshua, 'The Predator' would likely receive a title shot against the victor of the Tyson Fury-Oleksandr Usyk undisputed heavyweight title matchup later this year.