The “problema” wanted to make sure that what he said would not cause any problems.
During Thursday’s “Battle for the Giants: Prepare for the Impact” press conference, heavyweights Francis Ngannou and Renan Ferreira took to the stage in Washington, DC to promote their upcoming clash. The two will battle to determine the Professional Fighters League heavyweight champion at the event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on October 19. During the press conference, comments made by the Brazilian fighter through a translator were possibly misunderstood, sparking controversy among fans and fighters.
Ngannou, who is still recovering from the death of his 15-month-old son Kobe, mocked Ferreira’s nickname “Problema” and questioned the Brazilian’s boxing ability. Ngannou considered retiring after his son’s death but decided to honour his son’s memory by competing instead.
“Everybody has problems. He is certainly a problem for some people, but in my opinion, that’s not the problem. It will be a battle between the troublemakers and the predators. I think the nickname says it all,” the Cameroonian said with a laugh.
Ferreira responded without directly mentioning Ngannou’s son, saying his opponent would have big problems with him.
“Francis is having a tough year in his life but the biggest test of his life and of this year is me. I’m going to be his biggest problem this year,” Ferreira was quoted as saying.
The Brazilian’s response sparked a wave of criticism on social media, and after Ferreira, who is also a father, saw the backlash he posted a video in Portuguese explaining what he had said.
“I saw some parts of the press that were completely misrepresented about what I said,” Ferreira said. “Obviously, I was talking about the fight. I’m a father, I have kids, I would never disrespect something like that. I’ve already offered him my condolences and I would never do anything like that. We were promoting the fight, but when he said I wouldn’t be an issue, I was referring to the fact that he’d had two failures in boxing and was two years into MMA. I never meant to say anything like that.” [towards his child].”
