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Reigning UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou is on the road to recovery after suffering an ACL and MCL tear in the lead-up to his title defense against Ciryl Gane at UFC 270.
The Cameroonian is looking forward to a return to the octagon by the end of the year, so he's stepping up his recovery at the UFC Performance Institute. He bumped into familiar faces Deiveson Figueiredo and Charles Oliveira at the facility.
Ngannou initially shared an Instagram story of the trio in a swimming pool in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the video, 'The Predator' titles the video "Championship Collection", then pans the camera to 'do Bronx' and says:
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"You big and strong, yeah? Imagine me and your jiu-jitsu."
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Watch the video shared by RMC Sports Combat of Ngannou's IG story:
Oliveira is on an astounding 11-fight winning streak dating back all the way to 2017. He was unfortunately stripped off the lightweight title due to a weight cut ahead of his fight against Justin Gaethje. However, Oliveira will now compete for the vacant title since defeating Gaethje at UFC 274.
Francis Ngannou talks return date to the octagon
Ngannou is rehabilitating well with the aim of returning before the end of 2022. Despite the injury, the 35-year-old motored along to face Gane in January, coming out with a successful title defense.
In an interview with TMZ Sports in May, he said:
“It’s getting better. It’s been pretty good. It wasn’t easy, but we’re getting there. It’s been only 3 months, so yeah, I’m still doing physical therapy. If everything goes well I’ll be ready by the end of the year because it’s going to be nine months. So let’s say late December or early next year.”
Additionally, Francis Ngannou and pro boxer Tyson Fury are in talks for a hybrid fight early next year. Fury has won 32 of his 33 fights in his professional career, even announcing his retirement after beating Dillian Whyte in April. If this match takes shape, he will be the second UFC fighter after Conor McGregor's exemption to fight Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2017.
With Francis Ngannou contemplating a move away from the UFC, will he move away from the octagon ahead of his highly anticipated fight with Fury?
