Francis Ngannou makes his PFL debut this weekend, and the promotion is expecting his ex-employers to do what they can to steal the spotlight.
For the first time since January 2022, Ngannou will enter the cage for an MMA contest on Saturday, October 19. In his last appearance close to three years ago, "The Predator" got the better of Ciryl Gane to remain UFC heavyweight champion.
On this occasion, the Cameroonian will debut in new surroundings as the headline act for the Professional Fighters League's second pay-per-view event of 2024.
After completing his long-desired transition to boxing to do battle with Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, the former UFC champ will adjust his sights back to MMA to face 2022 PFL title winner Renan Ferreira in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
And as his first MMA fight week since departing the UFC gets underway, the PFL higher-ups are seemingly expecting some outside efforts to drag the spotlight away from Ngannou...
Davis Predicts White Announcement In Light Of Ngannou's PFL Fight Week
PFL founder, chairman, and co-owner Donn Davis has caused a stir in recent times owing to repeated shots at his organization's former fighter, two-time Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison.
To kick off the PFL's 'Battle of the Giants' fight week, Davis once again had his sights on a UFC figure, this time the boss.
In a social media post, Davis suggested the UFC CEO will no doubt be preparing a major announcement in the hope of stifling Ngannou's return — a habit of the UFC's that has become a running joke in the MMA community.
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"PFL Super Fight Week! Francis Ngannou makes his highly anticipated return with @PFLMMA!" Davis wrote on X. "So what will @danawhite announce to try to steal spotlight from THE biggest fight of 2024?? #PFLSuperFights"
It would stand to reason that no announcement could affect the anticipation for Ngannou's return, which comes after he took Fury to the limit and suffered a brutal KO to Joshua in the squared circle.
Ngannou vs. Ferreira headlines Saturday's card, with the likes of women's MMA legend Cris Cyborg, reigning Bellator middleweight kingpin Johnny Eblen, and former Bellator champion AJ McKee making up the undercard.