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- 鈥楤attle of the Giants: Brace for Impact鈥� happens on Oct. 19
- Cris 鈥楥yborg鈥� to face Larissa Pacheco in world title fight on same bill
NEW YORK: MMA superstar and undisputed heavyweight champion of the world Francis 鈥楾he Predator鈥� Ngannou (17-3) will make his return to the sport on Oct. 19, when he faces the 2023 PFL heavyweight champion Renan 鈥淧roblema鈥� Ferreira (13-3, 3 NC) for the new PFL Super Fights championship belt.
The co-main event will feature another world title fight between the greatest women鈥檚 MMA fighter of all-time, Cris 鈥淐yborg鈥� (27-2, 1 NC), whose legacy will be on the line when she takes on two-division champion Larissa Pacheco (23-4).
The location and venue of the fights will be announced at a later date by the PFL.
鈥淭he Professional Fighters League is excited to announce the highly anticipated return of superstar, undisputed heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou to MMA in 鈥楾he Battle of the Giants鈥� against the most feared heavyweight, 6 feet 8 inch 2023 PFL heavyweight champion Renan Ferreira in the biggest world title fight of the year,鈥� PFL CEO Peter Murray said.
鈥淥n Oct. 19 live on ESPN+ in the US and DAZN worldwide, MMA fans around the world will witness a true battle of the greatest fighters on the planet competing for the PFL Super Fights championship belts.鈥�
Ngannou said: 鈥淩enan is a great fighter, I have been watching him for years. I have been studying him for years, in fact I鈥檝e been telling people to watch this guy. He鈥檚 quite unique, he鈥檚 athletic, fast, his size doesn鈥檛 impress me as much as his skill.鈥�
MMA fans have been waiting for more than two years for Ngannou鈥檚 return. In that time, much has changed in the combat sports landscape, including the promotion for which 鈥淭he Predator鈥� competes.
Now, following a two-fight game-changing run in the boxing ring against Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, Ngannou is returning to face the Brazilian who has fought eight times since Ngannou鈥檚 last MMA bout and who viciously finished his last four opponents, including February鈥檚 21-second thrashing of longtime Bellator champion Ryan Bader.
鈥淐yborg鈥� is considered the greatest women鈥檚 athlete in MMA history, fighting and defeating the best featherweights in the world for almost 20 years.
Never one to shy away from fighting the best, Larissa Pacheco, a fellow Brazilian, is currently on a 10-fight winning streak, with victories against Kayla Harrison and former Bellator champion Julia Budd.
Both world champions have cleaned out their divisions and now will fight for the right to claim to be the best in the world.