PFL announces summer pay-per-view event featuring promotional debuts of Francis Ngannou and Cris Cyborg

Francis Ngannou and Cris Cyborg will reportedly be making their PFL debuts later this year.

‘The Predator’ is fresh off his return to the boxing ring against Anthony Joshua. The boxing match was Francis Ngannou’s second as a member of the PFL roster. The Donn Davis-led company gave the former UFC champion their blessing to compete in the ring, but after suffering a loss to ‘AJ’, he’s now set to return to MMA.

Earlier today, Donn Davis appeared on Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour. There, the PFL founder stated that Francis Ngannou will face Renan Ferreira this summer in Saudi Arabia. The two will headline an event featuring the likes of Cris Cyborg vs. Larissa Pacheco, and Cedric Doumbe on the undercard. As of now, there’s no date for the card but is expected between July and September.

For what it’s worth, the Brazilian has already taken to social media to provide pushback on Davis’ comments. However, Cris Cyborg has been insistent on making her PFL debut for months now, and Pacheco has been named as a potential opponent. The former tournament winner is known largely for handing Kayla Harrison her first loss in 2022.

Meanwhile, Renan Ferreira earned the opportunity to face Francis Ngannou last month, with a knockout win over Ryan Bader. ‘Problema’ won the PFL heavyweight season in 2023, winning a million dollars in the process. Now, Ferreira will get the chance to welcome Ngannou to the company later this year.

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Image via: @francisngannou on X

PFL announces promotional debuts of Francis Ngannou and Cris Cyborg

“That will be a pay-per-view fight.” Donn Davis stated earlier today on The MMA Hour, announcing Francis Ngannou’s PFL debut against Renan Ferreira. “We will also have Cris Cyborg against Larissa Pacheco as the co-main fight. That event will also have Cedric Doumbe, against somebody that we will announced [later].”

He continued, “So that fight is going to be big. Just because of Francis, but that event will also have other compelling matchups on it. That fight card will take place in Riyadh, in Saudi Arabia. But the details and terms of the full card, the details and full terms of the month and the timing, we won’t announce that for another two months. [Between July and September], that’s what we think.”

As previously mentioned, Cris Cyborg has already provided a bit of pushback on Donn Davis’ comments on X. Earlier today, the Bellator women’s featherweight champion stated that the promoter announced the bout, before speaking with her first.

What do you make of this announcement? Are you excited to see former UFC champions Francis Ngannou and Cris Cyborg in the PFL cage?