Sports

Francis Ngannou to make MMA return, PFL debut in October

Published

2 years ago

August 8, 2024

Francis Ngannou to make MMA return, PFL debut in October

“The Predator” is back. For the first time in 33 months, Francis Ngannou will make the walk to an octagon.

The former undisputed UFC heavyweight champion will return on Oct. 19 to face PFL heavyweight champion Renan Ferreira for the PFL Super Fight belt in Ngannou’s debut with the promotion.

Since defending his UFC heavyweight title against Ciryl Gane in January 2022, Ngannou has endured more than two years of negotiations, triumphs and heartbreak.

After spending 2022 recovering from surgery and waiting out the end of his contract to become the most sought-after free agent in MMA history, he spent the first half of 2023 negotiating a deal with the PFL that would allow him to compete as a boxer.

Francis Ngannou knocks down Tyson Fury in their bout in November 2023. (Photo: Justin Setterfield / Getty Images)

And then — after a world-class performance against lineal heavyweight champ Tyson Fury and a loss against Anthony Joshua — Ngannou suffered tragedy when his 15-month-old son died in April.

On Monday, Ngannou told The Athletic the loss left him with “a lot of insecurity, a lot of uncertainty,” and compared it to someone popping his life with a needle.

With Wednesday’s announcement, the 37-year-old said he has eagerly returned to the normalcy of his professional career.

And even after establishing himself as one of the most feared strikers in MMA history, he talked like a fighter hungry to prove himself.

“I have to prove that I can win this fight,” he said.

“The purpose (of this sport) is competing, giving your best every day. So yes I think I have something to prove, that I can still give my best.”

The Pulse Newsletter

Free, daily sports updates direct to your inbox.

As for what kind of fighter fans can expect nearly three years after his last MMA bout, Ngannou was bluntly simple: Much of what they’ve already seen.

“Just the same thing,” he said, later adding, “I think I show up doing everything to win the fight, knowing that I didn’t leave any stone unturned and that’s what I’m expecting to bring.”

If he’s right, he could change the landscape of the industry. The PFL has long been seen as a second-tier, if not third-tier, promotion to the UFC. Ngannou debuting with the same one-punch power that turned UFC’s heavyweight division upside down would give the PFL its most important moment.

Ferreira will be a formidable first opponent. The 6-foot-8, 34-year-old Brazillian is 13-3 and coming off a 21-second TKO of Ryan Bader in February for the “PFL vs. Bellator Champion” Super Belt. Before that, Ferreira defeated Denis Goltsov to win the 2023 PFL Heavyweight Tournament.

In an MMA era when “superfights” and long-hyped returns cause opponents to turn down years of other opportunities, such as Michael Chandler waiting for Conor McGregor in the UFC, this bout marks something different.

Ferreira took a calculated risk in sitting out the 2024 PFL season while he waited for Ngannou’s return after earning the shot by defeating Bader. He told MMA Fighting in March, “I’m very happy for this opportunity, and I hope it happens soon.”

Ngannou doesn’t talk lowly of Ferreira’s patience, comparing it to his own situation with becoming a free agent.

“When you have that opportunity, you just jump on it,” Ngannou told The Athletic. “Just as I went after my own opportunity in leaving the UFC when I chose that was necessary, I did what I had to do for my own opportunity.”

In the 15 months since signing with the PFL, Ngannou’s tactic of waiting out his contract hasn’t been duplicated by many others. But he doesn’t lose hope in changing the industry and believes his risk in 2022 built MMA-wide awareness of how fighter contracts work.

He even said some fighters have approached him for guidance on how to negotiate their future deals.

“Rome wasn’t built in one day. Change isn’t going to come around from one day or one year, maybe not five years,” he said. “But you can be certain that a lot of people today make moves and decisions using that as an example.”

He also doesn’t lose any sleep over the years that he did lose.

“I wasn’t missing anything. … My decision was for what I wanted and I what I think I should have done for me, so I don’t have regret.”

“At the end of the day, look at me. I think things played out for me just perfectly.”

Required reading

(Top photo courtesy of PFL)

Related Topics:Featured mixed martial arts

Click to comment

Sports

Craig Morton, quarterback who led the Broncos to their first Super Bowl appearance, dead at 83

Published

3 hours ago

May 12, 2026

Press Room

Craig Morton, quarterback who led the Broncos to their first Super Bowl appearance, dead at 83

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Former Denver Broncos quarterback Craig Morton, who was inducted into the team’s Ring of Fame, died on Saturday. He was 83.

Morton was critical in helping the Broncos reach their first-ever playoff appearance, ultimately getting them to Super Bowl XII during the 1977 campaign.

After going 12-2 during the season, and getting wins in the playoffs over the Pittsburgh Steelers and then-Oakland Raiders, Morton was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Year.

Denver Broncos quarterback Craig Morton stands on the sidelines with both hands on his hips. (GETTY)

“Craig Morton is unbelievable,” fellow Ring of Famer Haven Moses said after the Broncos won the AFC Championship in 1978, per the New York Times. “To me, he’s the most valuable player in the National Football League.”

Morton also won Sporting News Player of the Year, the PFWA Comeback Player of the Year and the NFL UPI MVP in 1977.

AARON RODGERS NEVER MET WITH STEELERS DESPITE RUMOR-FILLED WEEKEND AS QB’S DECISION REMAINS UP IN AIR

“We are saddened to learn of the passing of #BroncosROF quarterback Craig Morton, who died on Saturday at the age of 83,” the Broncos posted on social media.

Morton also led the Broncos to two different division titles and three playoff berths during his six seasons with the franchise. He finished his career in Denver with 11,895 passing yards, which marked the most in franchise history at the time.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Quarterback Craig Morton #7 of the Denver Broncos drops back to pass during an NFL game at Mile High Stadium in Denver, Colo., circa 1978. Morton played for the Broncos from 1977 to 1982. (Focus On Sport/Getty Images)

Morton also led the Broncos with pass attempts (1,594) and completions (907). But Morton’s time with the Broncos was the latter half of his NFL career.

He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in 1965, the fifth overall pick out of Cal. Morton spent the first 10 seasons of his career with the Cowboys, where he threw for 10,279 yards with 80 touchdowns and 73 interceptions. He went 32-14-1 in his time with Dallas.

Then, during the 1974 season, Morton was moved to the New York Giants, a division rival of the Cowboys. He went 1-6 in his first seven starts that year and wouldn’t find much success in New York across three seasons.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

For his career, Morton threw for 27,908 yards with 183 touchdowns. He owned an 81-62-1 record across 207 games.

Scott Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital.

Sports

High school boys volleyball: City Section playoff scores and pairings

Published

4 hours ago

May 12, 2026

Press Room

CITY SECTION

MONDAY’S RESULTS

QUARTERFINALS

DIVISION III

#1 New West Charter d. #9 Central City Value, 25-17, 16-25, 25-10, 17-25, 15-13

#13 Birmingham d. #5 University Prep Value, 3-1

#3 South East d. #11 Monroe, 25-16, 25-19, 26-28, 25-16

#2 Legacy d. #7 Lincoln, 17-25, 25-18, 25-19, 25-20

DIVISION IV

#8 Annenberg d. #17 Canoga Park, 26-24, 25-19, 22-25, 25-27, 15-13

#4 Math & Science College Prep d. #12 Mendez, 25-15, 25-17, 25-20

#6 King Drew at #3 Manual Arts

7 Maywood CES d. #2 RFK Community, 25-12, 25-21, 25-22

DIVISION V

#1 WISH Academy d. #9 Alliance Levine, 25-19, 25-12, 25-23

#13 Rancho Dominguez d. #21 LAAAE, 25016, 25-20, 25-15

#14 Franklin d. #6 Gardena, 25-15, 25-22, 25-17

#10 Animo De La Hoya d. #15 Sotomayor, 28-30, 25-23, 25-20, 25-23

TUESDAY’S SCHEDULE

(Matches at 7 p.m. unless noted)

SEMIFINALS

OPEN DIVISION

#4 Venice at #1 Granada Hills

#3 Chatsworth at #2 Palisades

DIVISION I

#4 North Hollywood at #1 Taft

#3 Cleveland at #2 Sylmar

WEDNESDAY’S SCHEDULE

(Matches at 7 p.m. unless noted)

SEMIFINALS

DIVISION II

#4 Marquez at #1 LA Hamilton

#7 Panorama at #6 Narbonne

DIVISON III

#13 Birmingham at #1 New West Charter

#3 South East at #2 Legacy

DIVISION IV

#8 Annenberg at #4 Math & Science College Prep

#7 Maywood Academy at #3 Manual Arts or #6 King/Drew

DIVISION V

#13 Rancho Dominguez at #1 WISH Academy

#14 Franklin at #10 Animo De La Hoya

Note: Finals in all divisions May-16 (sites and times TBA).

Sports

2025-26 NBA Playoff Odds: Spreads, Lines for Second-Round Series

Published

15 hours ago

May 11, 2026

Press Room

2025-26 NBA Playoff Odds: Spreads, Lines for Second-Round Series

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Now the NBA playoffs are in the swing of things.

Let’s check out the odds for the second round of the playoffs, at DraftKings Sportsbook as of May 11.

This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports.

EAST SECOND ROUND

No. 7 PHILADELPHIA vs. No. 3 NEW YORK
NYK wins 4-0

No. 4 CLEVELAND (+200) vs. No. 1 DETROIT (-250)
DET leads 2-1

GAME 4 — DET @ CLE (May 11)

Spread: Cavs -3.5
Moneyline: Pistons +140, Cavs -166
O/U: 213.5

What to know: This has been a weird series. Each team has yet to lose on its home court, and the games haven’t seen much domination on either side. Take Game 3 for example: Cleveland held Detroit to 18 points in the second quarter and took a 16-point lead into halftime. Then, in the third quarter, the Pistons held the Cavs to 19 points, cutting that deficit to two heading into the fourth. But Cleveland put together its highest-scoring quarter of the game in the final frame to emerge with a seven-point win.

WEST SECOND ROUND

No. 4 LOS ANGELES (+7000) vs. No. 1 OKLAHOMA CITY (-20000)
OKC leads 3-0

GAME 4 — OKC @ LAL (May 11)

Spread: Thunder -11.5
Moneyline: Thunder -520, Lakers +390
O/U: 214.5

What to know: It appears the Lakers just don’t have the firepower to compete with the Thunder. OKC has won the first three games of the series by a combined 59 points (19.7 points per game), including a 23-point win in Game 3 in Los Angeles. And consider this: SGA is averaging just 21 points per game on 46% shooting. The Thunder are stacked, and sit at 7-0 in the postseason so far.

No. 6 MINNESOTA (+320) vs. No. 3 SAN ANTONIO (-390)
Tied 2-2

GAME 5 — MIN @ SAS (May 12)

Spread: Spurs -10.5
Moneyline: Spurs -410, Wolves +320
O/U: 218.5

What to know: We’ve got a series on our hands. Now tied at 2-2, both of these teams have won once at home and once on the other team’s home floor, with the Wolves winning a crucial Game 4 in Minnesota. But that wasn’t the story of the night. Victor Wembanyama was assessed a Flagrant 2 in the first half of Game 4, and was ejected from the game, after hitting Naz Reid with a vicious elbow to the head. He will play Game 5, but how chippy might things be after that?