Renan Ferreira and Francis Ngannou are two of the most ferocious knockout artists in the heavyweight division today, but they know MMA isn’t only about face punching.

The former PFL and UFC champions will headline Saturday’s PFL Battle of the Giants in Saudi Arabia for the Superfight championship, and the Brazilian admits he won’t stay in the pocket and trade with Ngannou wildly if he sees a different path for victory once they are inside the cage.

“The important thing for us is the win,” Ferreira said in an interview with MMA Fighting. “It’s a big show and a big event, of course, a big promotion, but this is my career and my fight, and I’m going after a victory. I’ll do whatever it takes to come out with the win, and I know he’ll do the same thing. I’ll always go for the win wherever the fight goes, always bringing my best, where I feel the most comfortable at.”

Ngannou has also shown a different side of his fighting abilities in the past, wrestling his way to the victory on his final UFC appearance in January of 2022 to defeat Cyril Gane via unanimous decision.

“He was smart,” Ferreira said of Ngannou’s strategy at UFC 270. “MMA is about that, the mix. MMA isn’t just striking and knockouts, it’s everything. As long as you don’t use illegal blows, everything goes.”

Ferreira knows that knocking out a man like Ngannou would boost his name in the history books. Yet, winning is all that matters when it’s all said and done.

“We fight a fight a million times inside our heads, every shape and form of it, so it’s easier when we’re in there, but this is a five-round fight,” Ferreira said. “I’m being cautious there. Francis hits hard and walks forward, and he’s very strong, so I’ll use my movement and quick strikes, always hunting for the opportunity to land my jabs and go for the knockout. But, sure, the fight can go to the fence, go to the ground. I’ve trained all aspects of it so I’m not surprised by anything.”

“This is the biggest fight of my life,” he continued. “Everybody’s waiting for this moment. Two guys who have done a lot for their legacies and have done great fights and delivered great results. This is a wonderful moment for my life. I’m happy, well-prepared, and ready for war.”

Ferreira joined the PFL in May of 2021 and knocked out ex-UFC champion Fabricio Werdum in a bout that was later overturned to a no contest because Ferreira allegedly tapped to a triangle choke moments before the finish. His career has had ups and downs for two years before a major twist in 2023, winning the PFL heavyweight championship.

Ferreira battled Bellator heavyweight champion Ryan Bader for the ticket to face Ngannou next, and obliterated the UFC and Bellator veteran in just 21 seconds. “The Predator” was sitting cageside in Saudi Arabia that night in February, and “Problema” fells he had the MMA star in shock.

“After that knockout, he was looking like, ‘I really have a problem in front of me, a tough man to face,’” Ferreira said. “I’m super well-prepared to welcome him [to PFL] and put on a show for the fans. I’m happy with this opportunity and this gigantic moment, an event built for us. This is a historic moment.”

West Ham manager Julen Lopetegui says his side “lost any possibility” of getting back into the game after conceding three goals in eight minutes in their 4-1 defeat to Tottenham in the Premier League at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

MATCH REPORT: Tottenham blow away West Ham as Kudus sent off in dominant derby win

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The UFC stays put on its home turf this week with a pair of ranked middleweights at the top of the bill.

UFC Fight Night 245 (ESPN+) takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Get main card pick results from our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers, as well as additional analysis, below.

Darren Elkins vs. Daniel Pineda

Elkins vs Pineda

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Records: Elkins (28-11 MMA, 18-10 UFC), Pineda (28-16 MMA, 5-7 UFC)
Past five: Elkins 3-2, Pineda 1-2-2
Division: Featherweight
Rankings: None
Odds (as of 10.19.24): Elkins -120, Pineda +100
Junkie pick results: Pineda 6, Elkins 5

Jake Hadley vs. Cameron Smotherman

Hadley vs Smotherman

Records: Hadley (11-3 MMA, 3-3 UFC), Smotherman (11-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC)
Past five: Hadley 3-2, Smotherman 4-1
Division: Bantamweight
Rankings: None
Odds (as of 10.19.24): Hadley -500, Smotherman +380
Junkie pick results: Hadley 10, Smotherman 1

Charles Johnson vs. Su Mudaerji

Johnson vs Sumudaerji

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Records: Johnson (16-6 MMA, 5-4 UFC), Mudaerji (16-6 MMA, 3-3 UFC)
Past five: Johnson 3-2, Mudaerji 3-2
Division: Flyweight
Rankings: Johnson honorable mention
Odds (as of 10.19.24): Johnson -245, Mudaerji +200
Junkie pick results: Johnson 10, Mudaerji 1

Rob Font vs. Kyler Phillips

Font vs. Phillips

Records: Font (20-8 MMA, 10-7 UFC), Kyler (12-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC)
Past five: Font 1-4, Phillips 4-1
Division: Bantamweight
Rankings: Phillips honorable mention
Odds (as of 10.19.24): Font +400, Phillips -535
Junkie pick results: Phillips 7, Font 4

Anthony Hernandez vs. Michel Pereira

Hernandez vs. Pereira

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Records: Hernandez (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC), Pereira (31-11 MMA, 9-2 UFC)
Past five: Hernandez 5-0, Pereira 5-0
Division: Middleweight
Rankings: Hernandez honorable mention
Odds (as of 10.19.24): Hernandez -140, Pereira +120
Junkie pick results: Hernandez 6, Pereira 5

Preliminary card picks

Martinez vs. Ardelean

Although they don’t count toward the standings, MMA Junkie staff members still pick the fights on the prelims. Here are the results:

• Asu Almabayev vs. Matheus Nicolau: Almabayev 7, Nicolau 4
• Brad Katona vs. Jean Matsumoto: Matsumoto 10, Katona 1
• Joselyne Edwards vs. Tamires Vidal: Edwards 8, VIdal 3
• Jessica Penne vs. Elise Reed: Reed 8, Penne 3
• Alice Ardelean vs. Melissa Martinez: Martinez 11, Ardelean 0
• Robelis Despaigne vs. Austen Lane: Despaigne 11, Lane 0

Check out all the main card picks below.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 245.

MMA Fighting has a live stream watch party for Saturday’s PFL: Ngannou vs. Ferreira pay-per-view fight card in Saudi Arabia. In the main event, former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou makes his promotional debut against Renan Ferreira for the PFL Superfight heavyweight title.

Join MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck and Jed Meshew to watch the main card live as it happens.

In the co-main event, Bellator champion Cris Cyborg faces two-time PFL $1 million champion Larissa Pacheco for the PFL Superfight women’s featherweight title.

PFL: Ngannou vs. Ferreira also includes a Bellator middleweight championship rematch between Johnny Eblen and Fabian Edwards, along with an intriguing matchup between former Bellator featherweight champion A.J. McKee and surging lightweight contender Paul Hughes.

The pay-per-view main card will also feature a featherweight tilt between Husein Kadimagomaev and Zafar Mohsen.

Watch the PFL: Ngannou vs. Ferreira live watch party on Saturday at 4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. PT.

Don’t hold your breath for an MMA return from Paige VanZant.

The former UFC star, who in recent years has been fighting for BKFC and Power Slap, doesn’t see herself returning to the sport that launched her profile, although she doesn’t rule it out 100 percent.

VanZant has put a lot of mileage on her body throughout her combat sports career. She still loves MMA but doesn’t want to risk her health any further.

“I don’t ever like to say I’m closing the door 100 percent, but I do see it would be hard for me to go back into MMA, not because I don’t love it or not because I don’t have a passion for it still, but like I said, I broke my arm five times in my life and four times in basically two years of competing,” VanZant told MMA Junkie Radio.

“I had two surgeries on it, and I still have a huge plate that runs the length of my entire forearm. So just going back to that place of risking breaking my arm again and having surgery again and getting set back, I can still have the thrill of competing, and I can still get that rush without putting my body at risk. One, I’m fine if I break my arm, it’s really just the mental fortitude, I don’t know if I can push through that again. It was a really, really rough few years.”

VanZant returns to competition at Power Slap 9 on Oct. 24 in Abu Dhabi. Although the athletes are taking defenseless blows to the head, there isn’t the wear and tear of grappling in competition or preparation – which VanZant appreciates.

VanZant is signed with Power Slap on a fight-by-fight basis. She doesn’t know how long she’ll continue, but for now, she says it has been a fun career chapter.

“My draw to Power Slap is that I had nothing going on, and I just came out of a boxing match, so I was like, ‘You know what, I’m already in shape,’” VanZant said. “They called and asked if I wanted to do Power Slap, and I was like, ‘Yeah, why not? It seems like a great opportunity. I didn’t know if I would want to do it again, it was a brand-new experience, and I absolutely loved it.”