Ngannou fought in life, now the ring
Francis Ngannou once toiled in a sand mine, scavenged for food to avoid starvation and slept rough in a car park, so facing former two-time world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua on Friday is just another stop on his epic ragsto-riches journey.
“I’ve had a lot of experience in life,” the softly spoken Cameroon-born fighter said with characteristic understatement.
“I’ve built my fighting spirit as high as anyone else.”
Ngannou has done a lot in his 37 years.
The child of a single mother, he had to walk 10km to school and from the age of 10 he shovelled sand from open quarries, his meagre income helping to buy food and books.
“It was work meant for adults, but we didn’t have any options,” Ngannou said.
“Sometimes I didn’t have a pen or a notebook. Sometimes no shoes, my uniform was torn. I looked crappy.
“I didn’t like my life, I felt like I missed my childhood.”
In 2012, at age 26 and fired by dreams of becoming a professional boxer, Ngannou, who boasts a towering physique carved from his brutal work in the sand pits, made a break for Europe and a better life.
It took time and hardship for him to get to Paris where boxing coach Didier Carmont found him a place to live and a gym in which to train.
In 2021 he became the UFC world heavyweight champion then made his boxing debut when he lost on points against Tyson Fury after he had sent the English giant to the canvas.
On Friday, he returns to the scene of that fight, the Saudi capital Riyadh, to face 34-yearold Joshua.
“Of course I can knock Joshua out,” Ngannou said. “I believe if I land on anyone, I will knock them out.”