Francis Ngannou will be competing in MMA following his upcoming March 8th bout against Anthony Joshua in a bid to fulfill his obligation to fight for the Professional Fighters League (PFL)―who he signed with in May of 2023. With Ngannou having not yet fought for the American-based MMA promotion since signing with them, it has finally been confirmed who the Cameroonian MMA superstar will face next; the winner of PFL heavyweight champion Renan Ferreira and Bellator heavyweight champion Ryan Bader.
The cross-promotional event between the PFL and Bellator―which will be held on Saturday, February 24th―will see several champions and fighters from both promotions face each other, including heavyweight champions Renan Ferreira and Ryan Bader with the winner between them now confirmed to be facing Francis Ngannou (0-1, 0 KO’s) sometime in 2024.
Francis Ngannou’s upcoming match with Anthony Joshua (27-0, 24 KO’s) does not appear to be contingent on whether the Cameroonian wins or loses, as he will be competing in a professional boxing bout rather than a MMA bout. In that sense, Ngannou’s long overdue debut for the PFL will have been worth the time as he is not only set to compete against a prominent heavyweight boxer in Joshua in 2024, but he will likely also face the winner between Ferreira and Bader to seal his claim as the greatest heavyweight in combat sports.
The only potential hick-up that could dwindle the prospects of Ngannou facing the winner of Ferreira-Bader would be a victory over Anthony Joshua as the winner between the two heavyweights would supposedly face the winner between Oleksandr Usyk (21-0, 14 KO’s) and Tyson Fury (34-0-1, 24 KO’s) who are scheduled to fight on May 18th in the first undisputed heavyweight bout of the current four-belt era.
However, with the PFL having thus far proven to be quite flexible in allowing Ngannou to compete as a professional boxer, there is likely enough wiggle room for Ngannou to both fight the undisputed heavyweight winner and the victor between MMA champions Ferreira and Bader if he does make it past Joshua.
For now, Ngannou will be setting his sights on Anthony Joshua who carries both the accolades and experience to form a major stumbling block into the Cameroonian fighter’s aspirations to face the future heavyweight undisputed champion. With Ngannou having already completely dazzled and shocked the public by completing ten close rounds with WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, another upset might be on the cards as the Cameroonian prepares himself to face Joshua in two weeks.
