"At least act like it hurts" - Fans react as Francis Ngannou takes up body shot challenge against fitness influencer Will Tennyson

Francis Ngannou last competed in mixed martial arts in January 2022 when he defeated Ciryl Gane via unanimous decision to defend his heavyweight title at UFC 270. He later vacated the title, left the promotion, signed with the PFL, and took two high-profile boxing matches.

'The Predator' is set to make his highly-anticipated return this weekend when he faces Renan Ferreira at PFL Super Fights: Battle of the Giants in his promotional debut. He recently participated in a body shot challenge with Will Tennyson, where he was unphased by punches from the fitness influencer, stating:

"That's all? Go harder! My sister hits harder than that, man. Come on. Come on. Come on, man. You can do better."

Near the end of the footage, Tennyson added:

"Can you at least act a little bit? I'm going to hurt my hand. Okay, I give up. I give up."

Check out Francis Ngannou participating in the body shot challenge below:

Fans shared their reaction to the footage of Ngannou easily taking punches from Tennyson. UFC welterweight Abdul Razak Alhassan told 'The Predator' to act as if the punches hurt:

"😂 😂 😂 at least act like it hurts 😂"

@larry_fitness2022 joked that he was waiting for Ngannou's turn to throw punches:

"I was waiting for Ngannou’s turn"

Tennyson commented, noting that he took more damage despite being the one throwing punches:

"Somehow I got the worst of it"

@billy.jackcupp was not impressed with the fitness influencer's punching ability:

"I’m sorry but that is borderline sad .. all them damn muscles for absolutely nothing. Swing your weight behind it a little man jeez"

Check out the best fan reactions below:

Fan reactions

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Tom Aspinall claims Francis Ngannou is not fighting elite opponents

Francis Ngannou will make his highly-anticipated return to mixed martial arts this weekend. Tom Aspinall recently claimed that 'The Predator' will not face elite opponents after leaving the UFC. Speaking to Ariel Helwani on his new self-titled show, the No.1-ranked heavyweight claimed:

"I have a lot of respect for Francis. I have a lot of respect for him and I really appreciate his story. I really appreciate what he's done in the sport, but it's hard to debate right now. The guy he's fighting, he's not elite, do you know what I mean? And the guys he'll be fighting in the future aren't elite and it's as simple as that. These aren't the best guys in the world."

Check out Tom Aspinall's comments on Francis Ngannou and Renan Ferreira below (28:31):

Aspinall noted that his friend and training partner Ante Delija defeated Renan Ferreira via first-round TKO in 2022. He claimed that the PFL does not have elite fighters, adding that the only such fighters are on the UFC roster.