Francis Ngannou will finally make his highly anticipated return to mixed martial arts against Renan Ferreira.
This heavyweight bout scheduled for five rounds is taking place Saturday, Oct. 19 at The Mayadeen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Ngannou (17-3) and Ferreira (13-3) headline PFL: Battle of the Giants with the promotion’s super fights heavyweight title belt at stake.
Ngannou, 38, hasn’t competed in MMA since successfully defending the UFC heavyweight championship against Ciryl Gane on January 22, 2022, which would turn out to be his final fight with the UFC.
Roughly one year later, Ngannou left the UFC to sign with the PFL, which granted him permission to pursue his desire to compete in boxing.
Ngannou fought Tyson Fury and lost a split decision after stunningly knocking down boxing’s heavyweight king in October 2023.
Ngannou followed up that sterling performance by taking on Anthony Joshua this past March, a fight in which he was dominated and lost by second-round knockout.
That result signaled his time to return to MMA, where he’s won six fights in a row dating back to November 2018, with five finishes during that span.
Ferreira, 34, is the reigning 2023 PFL heavyweight champion after scoring three knockouts last season. Ferreira is coming off a 21-second dismantling of Bellator heavyweight champ Ryan Bader this past February.
Below is all the information you need to catch the PFL Battle of the Giants event including when the event starts and when the main event will get into the smart cage.
start time
- Date: Saturday, October 19
- Early Card: 1:30 pm ET | 10:30 a.m. PT
- Main Card: 4 p.m. ET | 1 p.m. PT
- Main event start time (approx.): 8 p.m. ET | 5 p.m. PT
- Location: The Mayadeen – Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
The PFL Battle of the Giants main card starts at 4 p.m. ET, with the early prelims at 1:30 p.m. ET.
Ngannou and Ferreira should begin around 8 p.m. ET, depending on how long the undercard fights last.
