Francis Ngannou’s amazing journey from sand mines in Cameroon to being homeless in Paris and UFC heavyweight champion
FRANCIS Ngannou’s remarkable journey to reach the top is one of hope, courage, strength and character, and is symbolic of the fighter he is.
On Saturday, the MMA legend, now 37, will take on his greatest challenge yet in Tyson Fury in a boxing contest.
The pair will step in the ring at Boulevard Hall in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia for a huge pay-per-view pay day which could land Ngannou an estimated £8million.
It dwarves any event he has previously fought in, but don’t expect the 6ft4in ex-UFC champion to be daunted.
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He’s faced bigger tests in his life that prove he is as resilient as it gets.
From a tough start in Cameroon, where he worked in the sand mines for just £1.50 a day, to being homeless in Paris, his story is the ultimate tale of survival.
Early years
Francis was raised in Batie, Cameroon, by a single mum who split from his dad when he was six.
The father was a street-fighter, renowned in the village for squaring up to gang members, four of five at a time, and giving them a hiding.
When he was nine, he joined his 11-year-brother by working in the sand mines.
The boys’ job was to shovel sand into piles so the men could shovel it into the back of tipping trucks.
In 1994, he became engrossed in the football World Cup held in the States. But not for the game, more for the spectacle and the country.
He gave himself a nickname amongst his peers, ‘American Boy’. Amusingly, he would sign his name as a kid as Francisco Ngannou, a nod to San Francisco.
His family had a small TV in their home, and he would wait patiently every Saturday to get another slice of America – in the form of the cult David Hasselhoff TV show, Knight Rider.
Francis’ pals dreamed of emigrating to France, but he thought bigger. The United States was his calling.
From Africa to Europe
To get to the US, Francis, who was now 26, would have to take the long way round. It took him 14 months to get to Paris.
Getting from Cameroon to Nigeria was easy because of the open border between the two countries.
Problems arose when he reached Niger, where he needed a visa.
That left him open to corrupt police and border control officers. If you are caught, you have to pay a bribe or face deportation.
Not wanting to give away money he had saved all his young life, he hid some in wrapped paper or swallowed it.
He managed to cram himself into a pick-up truck with 25 people, as they crossed the Sahara desert to get to Algeria.
The 24-hour journey was perilous in that if the rickety vehicle broke down, the passengers on board would not have enough water to live.
They made it, but Francis admitted he was forced to drink water that had “dead animals” in it.
Good relations
By now, Francis was beginning to understand the politics of each country he was passing through.
Due to Algeria’s close relationship with Mali, who had helped them during the civil war, he understood the importance of acquiring a Malian passport.
He managed to obtain one illegally, and attempted to cross the border from Algeria to Morocco.
In the past, Francis has admitted he was “scared as s***” when border control officers were checking his ID.
Miraculously, he made it through – but things were about to get much tougher in Morocco.
He would have to summon up skills akin to Bear Grylls.
Keeping a low profile, Francis lived in the woods and would eat food out of bins.
He tried to cross the border more than once, cutting his stomach open on his first attempt on barbed wire.
His injuries were so severe, he reluctantly went to hospital. After he was treated, police left him in the desert.
Despite failing several times, Francis wasn’t going to give up now. He took to water, and studied the 11-mile fence that prevented him from reaching Spain and asylum.
To avoid triggering infrared motion sensors and helicopters, he coated his boat in silver foil.
Once he made his way to across the water, he called the Red Cross who came and saved him with Moroccan helicopters on his tail.
Prison before fame
Out of the frying pan and into the fire, a year after leaving Cameroon Francis found himself in a Spanish prison.
“They bring you to this detention centre, but this is like a harsh prison. They just want to break you down mentally, at some point you go crazy in there,” he once revealed.
Because of his false passport, Spanish authorities were unable to deport Francis or keep him behind bars.
He was released after two months, when he figured out his next plan.
Francis pondered moving to England, although strict border controls meant he dodged a train fare and headed to France.
He said: “From Spain to go to France, Italy or Germany, it’s easy. there is no police control, but to go to England it’s difficult. Even as a French resident.”
A homeless Francis settled in Paris, looking for a boxing gym to train at, while sleeping in a car park.
By chance he met Fernand Lopez, a coach at MMA Factory in Paris, and they soon hit it off.
Lopez convinced Francis to change sports, and within two months he was competing in France’s MMA circuit.
He won five of his first six fights, before the UFC signed him up in 2015.
Six years later, he would cap his astonishing story by becoming the UFC heavyweight champion by knocking out Stipe Miocic.
His money-spinning fight against Fury could be the fairytale ending to a remarkable adventure, or just the beginning of the next chapter as a world champion boxer.
