Moments before brutally knocked out Renan Problem in his PFL debut, Francis Ngannou received an illustrious visit in the locker room from Cristiano Ronaldo, a football legend, one of the biggest celebrities in the world and also a personal friend of the fighter. After the fight, Eric Nicksick, the Cameroonian's coach, revealed that the presence of the Portuguese star had a greater effect than many imagined on his pupil's victory.
In an interview with 'MMA Junkie', Nicksick heaped praise on Cristiano Ronaldo and assured that the Portuguese fighter proved himself to be a 'hardcore' martial arts fan.
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“He was a really nice and down to earth guy. He showed himself to be a big fan of fighting, asked me a lot of questions, talked to me about Sean Strickland and other fights. He is very down to earth. There was a moment when Francis was putting the bandage on his hands and Ronaldo was talking about how he was feeling Francis' energy and then offered to say some words of encouragement,” said the coach.
According to the coach, Cristiano Ronaldo respectfully addressed the tragic loss of Kobe, Ngannou's son who passed away earlier this year, aged one year and three months, due to a brain malformation that was not diagnosed at birth. It is worth remembering that the player himself went through a similar situation when he lost one of his twins during childbirth in 2022.
“He talked about losing one of his sons and how he understood Ngannou’s pain and stuff like that. It was really cool. I know he’s a huge star, but sitting there having that personal conversation, it felt like he was part of the team. His son was with us as well so it was a really nice energy in the locker room. Especially someone of that stature who understands the pressure so much. It was cool. He’s a great guy,” Nicksick said.
Read More about: Cristiano Ronaldo, Francis Ngannou, PFL
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