Former UFC middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya has praised Cameroonian’s Francis Ngannou as the best heavyweight fighter in the world following his knockout victory over Renan Ferreira at the PFL Super Fights.
Ngannou, returning to MMA and making his PFL debut, delivered a stunning first-round knockout, showcasing his immense power and reaffirming his dominance in the heavyweight division.
Adesanya, who closely followed the fight, was impressed by Ngannou’s performance, especially considering the personal and professional challenges the Cameroonian-French fighter has faced recently.
“That was beautiful,” Adesanya said of Ngannou’s win. “I feel that, man. That’s for Kobe… Y’all must have forgotten, bro… Flawless, that was a beautiful performance. He took one leg kick, dodged the flurry, timed his right hand, shot for a double, kept him there, and knocked him out.”
The Nigerian-born New Zealand fighter also highlighted Ngannou’s resilience and ability to silence critics who doubted him after his UFC departure and venture into professional boxing.
“I’m proud, inspired, and just happy to watch him do his thing. He’s gone through so much in his career, even still after the whole boxing thing. People doubted him… People are prisoners of the moment, but they forget who this man is… I’m glad he reminded everybody why he’s the best, why he’s the one, why he’s Francis Ngannou,” Adesanya added.
Adesanya also suggested that Ngannou may have surpassed Stipe Miocic as the greatest heavyweight fighter of all time. However, he acknowledged that such opinions are subjective, especially with Jon Jones holding the UFC heavyweight title and Tom Aspinall’s rise in the division.
“Right now, people still hold Stipe as the greatest of all time in the heavyweight division; I think he’s one of the greatest. He beat Francis, but then Francis beat him in the worst way. It’s all subjective; it’s all art; it’s all [about] who you like. I think Francis is the greatest heavyweight of all time, but again, now that Jon Jones is the heavyweight champion, he’s only fought once… Tom Aspinall’s in the mix too, and he’s just getting started,” Adesanya explained.
Ngannou’s dominant victory in the PFL has reignited discussions about potential cross-promotional matchups and has reaffirmed his position as one of the most feared and respected fighters in the heavyweight division.
