‘It was chiselled’ – Francis Ngannou shocked coach with appearance on video call as MMA return nears

Francis Ngannou is getting closer to making his MMA comeback, according to his head coach Eric Nicksick.

‘The Predator’ hasn’t fought since October 2024, when he obliterated Renan Ferreira on his PFL debut.

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Ngannou joined the PFL in 2022 after a turbulent end to his UFC career, but accepted two lucrative boxing bouts with Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua before returning to his primary sport, MMA.

The 39-year-old is the promotion’s biggest signing of all time and has just one fight left on his contract.

He has discussed staying active in the gym across numerous interviews ahead of a potential comeback, given dust-ups with Jake Paul and Deontay Wilder have previously been presented to him.

Well, speaking to MMA Fighting, Nicksick of Xtreme Couture revealed Ngannou was in top condition after speaking with him on a video call, teasing that a return to the cage in 2026 is imminent.

Francis Ngannou is ‘lightest I’ve ever seen him’ says head coach

“We talk all the time,” Nicksick of Xtreme Couture told MMA Fighting.

“He was out in Dubai, he’s back in Cameroon, he’s coming back to Vegas here soon.

“Francis always holds his cards close to the chest and I just know Francis.

“He’s a guy who’s going to call me up on a Sunday and say, ‘Hey, we’re fighting Friday.’

“It’s one of those things with him. We talked recently and that’s basically what he said.

“He goes, ‘Hey, Bubba, I want to come back and get back into MMA.’

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“I told him, ‘We need to get back before a fight is booked and start getting your body to where we’re comfortable,’ and he’s actually in really, really good shape. 

‘He’s the lightest I’ve ever seen him. He called and FaceTimed, I saw his face right away and it was chiselled.

“Usually, he’s a little bit more plump and he’s been eating and stuff like that, but his knee is feeling good, so he’s getting his road work. 

“He’s training every day and his weight was down. I was like, ‘Yo, we got something coming up?’

“And he goes, ‘Yeah, I’m working on a few things.’ So hopefully, we see him back in the cage in 2026. And then the sky’s the limit for him, man.”

In December, Ngannou verbally agreed to fight PFL heavyweight Vadim Nemkov after the Russian became heavyweight champion in Lyon.

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Nemkov, a prodigy of the great Fedor Emelianenko, dismantled Ngannou’s former opponent, Ferreira, in a similar style, and called to fight the Cameroonian next.

New PFL CEO John Martin has said that he has a ‘special’ plan for Ngannou, but nothing has been announced yet.

“He can do whatever the hell he wants to do,” Nicksick concluded.

“On a personal level, I’d love to be able to see him compete in the UFC just because of the level of competition that he would go against.

“But if he fights Nemkov, s***, he looked great in his last fight, too. So he’s a guy that we’ve got to take seriously.

“Whatever opponent rises, we’ll be ready.”

UFC CEO Dana White has firmly ruled out Ngannou returning to his promotion.

However, with two legitimate heavyweights in Ngannou and Nemkov ready to go to war, it seems like a no-brainer for the PFL to make what could be the biggest heavyweight MMA scrap of the year.