Francis Ngannou’s $2M Payout Deal Praised By Renan Ferreira Ahead Of PFL Clash

Renan Ferreira is set to score the biggest payday of his mixed martial arts career and he owes it all to Francis Ngannou.

After scoring a 21-second knockout against Bellator champion Ryan Bader in February, Ferreira earned the opportunity to be the former UFC heavyweight champion’s first opponent under the PFL banner. The two titans will square off on Saturday, October 19 when the PFL returns to pay-per-view for the first of its anticipated Super Fights series.

‘Problema’ is going into the fight with his sights set on shocking the world and spoiling Ngannou’s big debut. But even if he comes up short inside the Smart Cage, Ferreira is going to leave Saudi Arabia with a mighty big bag.

Long before their fight was announced, Ngannou made it clear that whoever he competed against in the PFL would walk away with a guaranteed $2 million payday.

Speaking with Sportskeeda MMA, the 2023 PFL heavyweight tournament winner praised Ngannou for trying to take care of his fellow fighters, saying:

“I mean I think it shows who he is and the priority he has. It’s great! I’m sure he understands what it takes to be at this level, to compete at this stage. So I commend him for that.”

Renan Ferreira Believes he and francis ngannou boast similar styles

In 30 combined fights, Francis Ngannou and Renan Ferreira have an incredible 28 finishes between them, 22 of them coming by way of knockout. Boasting similar styles and equally heavy hands, ‘Problema’ expects the fireworks to fly in Kingdom Arena.

“Both Francis and I have similar styles,” Ferreira said. “This just happens to be the style that fans enjoy watching and following. So it’s just two massive guys with heavy hands that go out there and drop people. So what’s not to love?”

The fight will be Ngannou’s first MMA bout since his successful title defense against Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 nearly three years ago. In the time since, ‘The Predator’ has competed twice in boxing, going toe-to-toe with Tyson Fury for 10 rounds before suffering a brutal KO loss against Anthony Joshua in March.