Francis Ngannou has to cut 22lbs to make the Heavyweight limit in the UFC

UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou might be sidelined from competition due to a knee surgery he underwent following victory over Cyril Gane but that’s not stopping him from keeping his fans updated .

Ngannou recently made some interesting comments regarding his weight.

At the moment Francis Ngannou is vlogging his trip to London in April, after attending the showdown between Tyson Fury and Dillian Whyte.

In a conversation with one of the gym members, he admitted that making weight for fights is hard. He also revealed that even on the heavyweight limit, he has to cut to 10 kgs (22 lbs) to make weight.

“Because even now, to make weight, it’s hard for me,” Ngannou said.

“How much weight do you have to cut?” asked the gym member.

“10 kilograms” he answered. “It’s not that big for it, because, yeah, just because I don’t use to. But people cut a lot of weight, even small guys.”

Ngannou has been tempering down his weight for the last couple of bouts due to knee injuries. According to him, he’s been forced to modify his training which affected his weight.

Ngannou weighed in at 263lbs for Stipe II and 257lbs for Gane bout. Limit for UFC Heavyweights is 265lbs.

Ngannou just came off his first title defense in January when he beat the interim champion Cyril Gane by unanimous decision. In the fight, ‘The Predator’ surprised the world with his unexpected wrestling skills that won him the fight despite the knee injury.

Following the fight, the Cameroonian was subjected to the UFC’s champion clause, which saw him automatically extend his contract for a period of time. Ngannou is attempting to become a free agent – he’s testing the sunsetting clause that limits the length of time a contract can be auto extended. As per his own account – he will become a free agent come December of 2022.

Ngannou has been involved in a contract dispute with the UFC for the longest time. Among Ngannou’s demands are a boxing bout with Tyson Fury and a significant pay bump.