He was homeless when he arrived in France
Arrived in France in 2013 from his native Cameroon, Francis Ngannou had a difficult start.
In 2018, he told
Le Figaro
its first steps in its new territory.
“I arrived in France in 2013 with barely a hundred euros in my pockets.
I was homeless, I slept in a parking lot ”.
His natural physical abilities, "it's genetic, my daddy was strong too" ultimately made him stand out and accomplish great things.
The colossus knows the galley in Paris, eats thanks to humanitarian associations and gives them back by giving a hand.
One day, he pushes open the doors of a room in the 11th arrondissement.
Pillar of the club, Didier Carmont quickly pushes him to enter a cage rather than climb into a classic ring.
“At my age, it was difficult to break into boxing,” recalls NGannou.
Didier, who took me off the street, immediately saw a future in MMA.
He told me that I could quickly earn money ”.
"READ ALSO - The incredible odyssey of Francis NGannou, the former homeless now star of the UFC
A childhood between sand quarries and school
Coming from a particularly poor family, the native of Batié, in the Cameroonian highlands, had an eventful childhood.
“My family was very poor.
From the age of 12, I had to work in the sand quarries in the summer to meet the needs of my relatives and buy my school supplies.
Despite my best efforts, I was always sidelined at school ”.
His boxing dreams are quickly denigrated by the inhabitants of his village.
“People in the village laughed at me and said that I had lost my way.
For them, you have to be a mason or a farmer, there are no other ways out.
I left without looking back ”.
An additional motivation to succeed.
He wanted to do boxing
At the beginning, Francis Ngannou intended for English boxing.
It is with this idea that he goes to France.
“At first MMA was not my thing,” he admits.
For me it was just a fight when it's a very technical and very intelligent sport where David can beat Goliath ”.
Fernand Lopez, influential person of MMA, is initially impressed by the athlete.
“From the first session, I felt that Francis and MMA, it was going to be something.
Physically, he's a monster.
And few heavyweights are able to move like him ", exposes the coach, also amazed by" the capacity of adaptation "of the prodigy.
The fighter from French MMA who went the furthest
By winning the UFC heavyweight title this Sunday against Stipe Miocic, he is largely the fighter from the French training having gone the furthest in the famous league of MMA (Mixed Martial Arts)
He won four times in less than a minute
The Cameroonian colossus is kind… expeditious.
Four times out of his 19 fights, Francis Ngannou won in less than a minute.
The first time dates back to his debut against Switzerland's Luc Ngeleka in 2014, which he beat in 44 seconds.
But it is especially since 2018 that the Cameroonian has got into the habit of sending her opponents to the mat in less than a round.
44 seconds against the American Curtis Blaydes in September 2018. 26 seconds against another American, Cain Velasquez in February 2019. And 20 seconds to triumph over the Surinamese Jairzinho Rozenstruik in May 2020. Shorter and shorter fights…
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