Eric Nicksick tells the story of how Francis Ngannou’s kind act brought one of his coaches to tears 👏
🎥 Follow
#UFC
#Mixed Martial Arts
pic.twitter.com/9UR5dzj31g
— Championship Round (@ChampRDS)
August 10, 2024
Xtreme Couture head coach Eric Nicksick recently revealed that Francis Ngannou’s actions brought one of his fellow coaches to tears.
Nicksick said fellow coach Nate Pettitte is one of the hardest workers in the gym, dedicating his whole life to the Las Vegas-based camp. A few weeks ago, Pettitte walked up to a tearful Nicksick in the gym and told him Ngannou had just given him a check.
Nicksick later thanked Ngannou for looking out for Pettitte, saying “The Predator” wouldn’t want his coach’s efforts to go unrewarded. Nicksick also praised Pettitte for playing a key role in preparing Ngannou for his knockout title win against Stipe Miocic at UFC 260 in 2021.
“Nate Pettitte is one of the coaches at the gym. Nate is one of the hardest workers you’ll ever see in the gym,” Nicksick recently told MMAFighting.com. “He’s just always got pads for people, he’s always on the go, he’s a dog… He has no family, he has no life. His life is this gym. Nate came up to me with tears in his eyes while we were putting together a new cage. That was about two weeks ago, and he said, ‘Hey, Francis just gave me a check and said thank you for everything you’ve done.’ I don’t know how much it was. I never asked him, but it was enough to move this guy to tears and to his heart’s content. I told Francis later, ‘Hey, thanks for introducing me to Nate.’ And he said, ‘Sure, bro. I know how hard he works, and I want to pay him for all the time he puts in for other people that maybe he’ll never get paid for.'”
“So I’m taking good care of myself at home, in my family and with my coaching staff. [and]
“Nate played a big role in Francis’ win over Stipe Miocic. Nate ran the wrestling training with Dennis Davis. So to give back to Nate, that’s just the kind of guy Francis is.”
Ngannou has not competed in MMA since defending his title against Cyril Gane at UFC 270 in January 2022. Ngannou is currently scheduled to make his Professional Fighters League debut against 2023 heavyweight champion Renan Ferreira on October 19 in Saudi Arabia.
