Francis Ngannou fought Renan Ferreira injured, says coach

Francis Ngannou’s coach Eric Nicksick has revealed “The Predator” was injured before his PFL debut.

Ngannou shared the PFL SmartCage with Renan Ferreira in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia this past Saturday. This was Ngannou’s first pro MMA fight since January 2022.

Ngannou’s time away from traditional MMA rules didn’t have a negative impact on his performance. “The Predator” defeated Ferreira via first-round knockout to capture the PFL Super Fights Heavyweight Championship.

RELATED: FRANCIS NGANNOU REFLECTS ON PFL TITLE WIN AMID FAMILY TRAGEDY: “IT WAS MY BIGGEST CHALLENGE”

Francis Ngannou Was Injured Prior to PFL Title Win

During an interview with MMAJunkie.com, coach Eric Nicksick revealed Francis Ngannou had a rib injury ahead of the Renan Ferreira fight.

“It was bad enough to where you’ve got to think: He blew out his knee and wasn’t going to pull out of the Ciryl Gane fight, (but almost pulled out of this one),” Nicksick told MMA Junkie in an exclusive interview on Sunday. “There’s a difference, different stakes, but also it was a different type of pain for him, and obviously we had a grappling-heavy game plan.

“He was worried if he was on his back, how he would be able to move and try to grapple with an injured rib. Once he went to the doctors and they cleared him with an MRI and everything else, I think he realized, ‘I’m going to be OK. I’m going to get through this still.’”

Ngannou had a lot weighing on him ahead of the Ferreira fight. This was his first bout since the passing of his son, Kobe. After Ngannou emerged victorious, he became quite emotional, as did members of his team.

A huge weight has been lifted off Ngannou’s shoulders. He questioned whether or not he could continue fighting following the family tragedy. It’s quite clear that he’s still a force to be reckoned with.