Fernand Lopez, who was his first coach at the MMA Factory in Paris, says: “Whoever holds the UFC heavyweight MMA world belt is the strongest man on earth.
For two weeks, this man has been called Francis Ngannou.
At 34, the native of Batié in Cameroon broke stones in a quarry in his village and then migrated to France and Paris where he was homeless for a long time, before becoming the world superstar of MMA.
Two weeks after beating the American Stipe Miocic to conquer the heavyweight belt of the UFC, Francis Ngannou gave us, from Las Vegas where he lives, long minutes to talk about his success, his dreams, his projects. , of his former homeless life in a voice as soft as his physique (1m93, 118 kg) is imposing.
How have you been feeling since you took the UFC World Belt?
FRANCIS NGANNOU.
It's hard to define and to be honest I don't realize what is happening.
I have been carried away for two weeks in a whirlwind of requests and obligations and I have not yet had time to ask myself to think about all this.
Do you feel like the master of the world?
Not at all !
Above all, I have the impression that from now on "The predator" that I am, since it is my nickname, will no longer go hunting other fighters.
It is I who become their prey.
The coolest thing about all of this is that from now on, I don't have to look for fights anymore either.
They are the ones who will come to me.
The holder of this UFC heavyweight belt is said to be the strongest man on earth.
Are you?
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It is very exaggerated.
No, I don't consider myself the strongest man in the world.
🔥🇨🇲 HE DID IT !!!
Magnificent Francis Ngannou who defeats Miocic to seize the heavyweight title!
🏆 On top of the world friends! #RMCUFC pic.twitter.com/ycOI3RIVio
- RMC Sport Combat (@RMCSportCombat) March 28, 2021
You said winning this belt was your ultimate dream ...
Yes it was my dream.
But I never said "ultimate" because once it is reached, it means that we have none to achieve afterwards.
My ultimate dream, I do not know it and so much the better.
Ultimate, it's the top and I'm not there.
This belt only opens a new chapter in my life and I still have a lot to accomplish, a long way to go.
Here in the United States, we say "Sky is the Limit", "the sky is the only limit".
This is the truth and my motto.
This limit, I have not yet reached.
Maybe I will never reach it.
Could English boxing be part of the rest of your path?
Absolutely.
I never wondered if I was going to come back to boxing, it has always been a given.
I came from boxing, that's where I started and it has always been there.
When I arrived in Paris, I wanted to become a boxer, not an MMA fighter.
I didn't even know it existed.
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Francis Ngannou tells us about his incredible fate
But I was told that I had more opportunity to make a career in MMA rather than drowning myself in the mass of all boxers.
I think I did pretty well in MMA but my initial dream is still boxing.
Biggest heavyweights like Tyson Fury want to challenge you ...
If I had started the way I wanted by practicing boxing, I would have started from such a low level that I would never have had a chance to face champions like him.
Now I might be lucky enough to be able to rub shoulders with boxers like him and that's cool.
I know there is a lot of excitement and adrenaline behind these possible fights.
We are already wondering what it will give, how it will happen.
Curiosity will make the beauty of my eventual boxing match.
What does your friend Mike Tyson advise you on this matter?
We saw each other last Friday.
He was my idol and I became his friend.
We talked about it a bit and he promised me that when I do my first boxing match, he will be in my corner.
Isn't it classy?
Mike, I love him and we get along very well but his way of doing things is not quite the same as mine (
smiles
).
He's just Mike Tyson, which is already a lot.
It's always a great time with the legend @MikeTyson.
New @hotboxinpodcast episode drops soon 🏆💪 pic.twitter.com/AgXijSTQtN
- Francis Ngannou (@francis_ngannou) April 6, 2021
How did your stay in Paris, when you were homeless, build the champion that you have become?
Wondering what would happen if we removed one of the first levels of a 50-story building?
Something would be out of place and it would fall apart, right?
Each floor contributes to the solidity and construction of the building.
It's the same for me.
Cameroon, my visit to Paris made what I have become.
You cannot take away or obscure a single part of my life, otherwise I would no longer be the man who speaks to you.
What do you have left of your stay in Paris?
Lots of things: friends, family.
I continue to follow everything that is happening in Paris and my connection with the city remains very strong.
My living conditions have of course changed since then, but I don't forget that it was in Paris that my adventure took off.
Even the saddest moments of my life, in Cameroon or when I arrived in Europe through Morocco and Spain, shaped me.
They are part of my story.
When you think about your living conditions in Paris, are you sad?
Not at all, on the contrary!
I have never been sad in Paris, even when I slept on the street or in my underground car park.
I ran into people who pity me and I didn't like it.
It bothered me because I saw negative things in their eyes.
It gave me bad energy while I, despite these conditions, was enthusiastic.
Even today, one of the happiest moments of my life remains when I arrived in Paris (
Editor's note: in 2013)
, even though I lived on the streets.
Really ?
I wanted to do something with my life, to take initiatives.
I had a big open playing field in front of me with lots of opportunities.
I wanted to participate in this game because I had all the cards in my hand.
I was told: "You'll see, Paris is not paradise!"
These people did not understand anything.
It was the first time that I arrived in a place saying to myself: “Everything is possible, it's up to you to play even if you lose at the beginning.
"
Yet you have lived through terrible situations ...
But I was living a dream with my bag on my back.
I was very enthusiastic.
I have never been so free as I was then.
I had a lot of very sad moments in my childhood in Cameroon, it's true.
But it never happened in Paris.
I was in the mindset of someone who wanted to be successful.
Are you almost nostalgic for it, then?
Perhaps.
My first memory of Paris was around Bercy.
I was alone and went to brush my teeth in a public toilet.
I looked at the AccorArena, thinking that the older ones were singing there and I saw a big motorcycle arrive.
I was told "It's Johnny Hallyday's playing there tonight."
"I said to myself:" And if one day I had the chance to be a star in this room ", without knowing yet for what reason at the time.
In the United States, I fought in the biggest venues in the country but Bercy remains a very special place, very special for me.
Being the star of a night out in this room gives meaning to everything I do in my life.
If you ran into a homeless man like you were in Paris, what would you do for him?
When I look back and wonder what I was missing during this time, I tell myself that I was missing absolutely nothing except success.
Financially, I was very poor but otherwise so rich because I had faith.
When you have faith and confidence in yourself, you are rich and success is only a matter of patience.
Nothing exceeds a man's faith and confidence.
So if I run into someone who doesn't have that determination in them, I'll make sure I help them find it.
“I don't think I'm successful because I'm a UFC champion or because I have a house or because I have a car.
My perception of success is because I never gave up. "@ Francis_ngannou overcame obstacles, doubt, and detractors during his inspirational journey 🙌 (via @arielhelwani) pic.twitter.com/C4ugjfKgQl
- ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 31, 2021
If you could meet him, what would you say to Francis Ngannou, the Parisian homeless man?
Courage!
It's the only thing I needed.
Of course, during this period I had times when I wanted to give up.
Even today, the encouragement motivates me when I do not want to go to train which can happen.
These encouragements tell me: "But why are you complaining, stop, that's enough!"
Go ahead !
"
What would the homeless person say to you at the time?
Nothing, because the Francis of yesterday is identical to that of today.
The two still have the same dreams that they want to hold onto and that are not fulfilled.
I still have lots of dreams, I have so many, as if I had just been born.
