Impa Kasanganay Targets Fights with Ngannou, Eblen After 2024 PFL Championship

Preparing for a Professional Fighters League Championship world title fight on Nov. 29, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Impa Kasanganay wants to continue his stretch of dominance. For the second time in as many years, Kasanganay, the 2023 PFL Light Heavyweight champion, returns to the Championship in 2024, where he will face Dovlet Yagshimuradov.

Speaking to Sherdog.com ahead of his title fight, Kasanganay discussed what the 2024 PFL season has meant to him, his focus to keep moving forward and what he’d like next after the entire season comes to an end with a potential second championship around his waist.

“I’m more mature. I’ve grown, there’s been a lot of awesome moments and challenges,” Kasanganay said about what the difference is in this year compared to 2023.

“When you first do something, you can be like an excited puppy, you’re like ‘Oh my gosh, what’s going on? Let’s go. Let’s have some fun.’ But now here I’m grown, I’m more mature now, you lack less, you lack nothing. [I] respect my opponent: Dovlet is an awesome opponent, and I’m looking forward to this. I’m looking forward to showing the ability to kill, the ability to dominate. The best way to respect your opponent is to beat them as badly as they need to be beaten by. I’m locked in.”

In the different and unique space in which the Professional Fighters League operates, it resets the pursuit of a prestigious mixed martial arts world title each calendar year. Instead of being a reigning champion who can hold the belt for an undetermined length in other promotions, PFL champs have to get back on the hunt year-after-year. For Kasanganay, he approaches every bout as a title fight and believes he will always be on the hunt for greatness, no matter the contest.

“For me, it doesn’t matter if it’s my first amateur fight or first pro fight, every fight is a title fight. Any fight to me is a world championship fight. This is my landscape, this is my plan, wherever I go is home, I’m always hunting. I know that landscape better than anybody else. Whatever opponent it is, whoever comes out there, I'm hunting them. What I love to do is hunt, what I love to do is fight.”

If he achieves what he sets out to do, Kasanganay is not just looking to do the same thing once again in 2025; he has much bigger -- pun intended -- goals on the table for himself. When asked what could potentially challenge him following the conclusion of the 2024 PFL season, Kasanganay mentioned a familiar opponent in Johnny Eblen, and PFL Super Fights Champion, Francis Ngannou.

“If your name is Francis Ngannou or Johnny Eblen, sign the contract. Other than that, don’t give me another name. I’ll take both those guys out next year, so that’s it.”

Throughout his pursuit for a second consecutive PFL crown, Kasanganay has used the word dominance to describe his mindset every step of the way.

“On Nov.30 when I wake up, I'll be very grateful for every single opponent that I fought. I’ll see many moments in the year where I claimed victory, dominated, had great moments, but I’ll also have four out of five fights as finishes, and I’ll always remember that moment when I didn’t finish Josh [Silveira]. I’ll be more challenged to move forward; the dominance doesn’t end on Nov. 30. It’s another step.”

The path of greatness is one that doesn’t challenge Impa Kasanganay; he welcomes and embraces the moment to thrive. Since joining the PFL, he has been a prime example of taking the opportunities provided and building himself into a star. It’s been a relationship that has thrived for both sides, and when it comes to its season format, it would be difficult to have a better fighter to have on display, working for a second straight world title, than the 2023 Light Heavyweight king.