How Cristiano Ronaldo motivated Francis Ngannou with emotional speech before the fight

Cristiano Ronaldo motivated Francis Ngannou with an emotional speech this Saturday, before the heavyweight knocked out Renan Ferreira in Saudi Arabia.

Ngannou, who clinched the PFL heavyweight title with his victory, was competing in MMA for the first time in almost three years, having boxed with Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua in the past 12 months.

The former UFC champion had mixed luck in these fights; although he lost to Fury on points, he knocked down the then WBC champion, securing a “moral” victory, but there was no consolation in his brutal knockout by Joshua.

“AJ” knocked Ngannou down three times en route to a second-round victory, and a month later, Ngannou announced the death of his 15-month-old son, Kobe.

Football superstar Ronaldo, who competes for Saudi club Al-Nassr, experienced a similar tragedy, having lost a son during childbirth in 2022. And the 39-year-old Portuguese icon discussed the grief surrounding this episode with Ngannou, 38 years old, on Saturday (October 12). ).

Ngannou’s coach, Eric Nicksick, told MMA Junkie: “He was so cool and super down to earth. He was a super nice guy and a huge fight fan, so he had a lot of questions. He was talking to me about (UFC fighter Sean) Strickland, this and that, whatever fight it was.

“Then at one point Francisco got up to wrap his hands and Ronaldo was talking about how he could feel Francisco’s energy. And he said, ‘I’m just going to give you words of encouragement…’

“He was talking about losing one of his children and how he related to that and things like that. It was pretty cool. I know what a big star he is, but sitting next to me and having this very personal conversation made him feel like part of the team – in that moment.

“His son was there with us and enjoying it, so it was a very welcome energy to have in the room. Especially someone of that stature who understands the highest pressure.”

Ngannou took down Ferreira and knocked out the Brazilian in the first round, in the Cameroonian’s first MMA fight since January 2022, when he retained the UFC title with a decision victory over Ciryl Gane.

A year later, Ngannou left the UFC to pursue his lifelong dream: boxing. In the meantime, he signed a contract with the PFL.

Ngannou’s two boxing fights took place in Riyadh, as did Saturday’s victory over Ferreira.

In an emotional post-fight interview in the Octagon, Ngannou said: “The last two days have been very difficult, full of emotion. I couldn’t do anything without thinking (about Kobe’s passing).

“I tried to stay strong and tell myself to do everything I can to move forward, but it’s hard. It’s just difficult. I only did this fight because of him.

“I wanted to fight for him… I hope they remember his name, because without Kobe we wouldn’t be here tonight; I wouldn’t have fought. Thank you everyone for coming.”