After some early heavy kicks from both fighters, Ngannou, who had not fought in mixed martial arts since January 2022, took the fight to the mat and eventually got behind his Brazilian opponent, landing a series of bludgeoning punches to end the fight with 88 seconds left in the first round.
A tearful Ngannou then dedicated his victory to the memory of his 15-month-old son Kobe, whose death was announced in April.
"I only did this fight because of him. I wanted to fight for him... I hope they can remember his name, because without Kobe, we wouldn't be here tonight," he said in a post-fight interview in the cage.
This story is from the October 21, 2024 edition of The Straits Times.
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This story is from the October 21, 2024 edition of The Straits Times.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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