From his impoverished upbringing in Cameroon’s sand quarries to surviving on the streets of Paris, Francis Ngannou was born with the resilience—and earth-shattering power—of a champion.
It took years to develop his skills, but Ngannou’s journey from being an unpolished brawer to an undisputed champion made him the face of the sport. Critics coined him a hype job, bust and a disappointment after back-to-back losses to Stipe Miocic and Derrick Lewis. Those same doubters were left speechless after Ngannou brutally snatched Miocic’s Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight title in two rounds just three years later.