Man-mountain Francis “The Predator” Ngannou is a professional mixed martial artist, who was the UFO Heavyweight Champion of the World before departing from the promotion in 2023. He is also the founder of the Francis Ngannou Foundation, an organisation set up to help the children of Cameroon have access to gyms and training facilities.
Born and raised in Cameroon, Ngannou had a hard upbringing in poverty and took up boxing to avoid becoming embroiled in gang culture. He travelled to France at the age of 26 to pursue a professional boxing career, but found himself homeless on the streets of Paris until he met a mixed martial artist who introduced him to the MMA factory. He trained and was allowed to lived at a gym to get himself on his feet, and then started his MMA career in 2013. Two years later he made his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut, quickly establishing himself as a formidable fighter on the circuit. After winning numerous Performance of the Night awards, he became the UFC heavyweight Champion in 2021.
Ngannou regularly connects with his millions of followers and fans through Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, posting pictures and comments about his life around martial arts. He also has a dedicated YouTube channel, Francis Ngannou, and an official charity website, francisngannoufoundation.org.
