Two months on from his knee reconstruction, UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou is able to carry out day-to-day tasks after weeks of pain.
Ngannou tore his MCL and injured his ACL less than a month before fighting Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 in January. The knockout artist was forced to wrestle his way to victory against his former training partner Gane because of his injuries, winning a decision for the first time in his MMA career.
He underwent surgery in March and admitted the first weeks of recovery were debilitating. Ngannou is confident he will make a return to training in a few months after working with the UFC's Director of Physical Therapy, Heather Linden.
"Now I can drive by myself," he said on his YouTube channel. "I'm off crutches. It's very relaxing now compared to the first two or three weeks, that was horrible. I couldn't drive, couldn't walk, even to go and grab something in the fridge it was a hell of trouble.
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"I kind of do everything on my own which is good. Not 100 per cent, but I'm still good. Still pain at night, but not as much as in the beginning. It's going to be better and better moving forward. In two or three months, I'll be happy enough to train, just a little jogging.
"I'm not strong enough to [spar], I think I better just give it enough time to heal up at once, so I don't have to redo it. If I try to force it earlier, I think I might have to redo it, go over it again. So I better give it the time that it takes. I rest a lot, I'm not a pressure guy. I'll just relax, just know when to do what I have to do, and how to do it properly."
Ngannou fought out of his UFC contract by defeating Gane and is free to leave the promotion in December. He is yet to sign a new deal and admits that turning down several offers from the promotion has cost him over £5million.
'The Predator' is demanding a clause in a new contract that would allow him to box WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury. Ngannou was ringside for Fury's last fight against Dillian Whyte and teased a 'hybrid-rules fight' with 'The Gypsy King' after his knockout win.
