Exclusive: Francis Ngannou Talks Move To Las Vegas, What Beating Alistair Overeem Means For His Career
Francis Ngannou is unbeaten in his UFC run, but looks to gain a championship fight with a victory over Alistair Overeem Saturday night at UFC 218.
After five consecutive wins, Ngannou's life is undergoing major changes. Ngannou has relocated from France to Las Vegas, and is taking full advantage of the UFC's Performance Institute, as he told Fightful.com's James Lynch.
"It was a big benefit to me. Sometime you move and you need to find a gym and all that stuff. I didn't do that because the Performance Institute was already close. In France, MMA is not recognized. In France, we need some sort of national facility. Then we have our own fighters, that's something that will help us," said Ngannou.
With many fighters earning championship opportunities after three or four wins in the division, Ngannou knows he'll likely be in line for one himself if he emerges victorious at UFC 218. Although the more experienced Overeem could pose a challenge on the ground, Ngannou isn't concerned.
"To be honest, that's not a problem for me. I'm ready for whatever he'll bring. I'll take the first opportunity he'll give me. That will probably give me the title shot. Under contender number four, there's Cain Velasquez, Fabricio Werdum, Alistair Overeem. Werdum and Overeem already fought and lost against Stipe. Cain is injured, so I'm just the right one after beating Alistiar Overeem," said Ngannou.
UFC 218 takes place Saturday, December 2 from the Little Ceasers Arena in Detroit, Michigan. Fightful.com will have full, live coverage of the show, including a post-show podcast covering UFC 218, the TUF 26 Finale and Bellator 189.
