MMA Factory is a

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

gym based in

Paris, France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. It is considered the largest MMA gym in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, and is notable for producing former UFC Heavyweight Champion,

Francis Ngannou Francis Zavier Ngannou (born 5 September 1986) is a Cameroonian and French professional mixed martial artist and professional boxer who currently competes in the Heavyweight division of the Professional Fighters League (PFL), where he is the in ...

and former UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion,

Ciryl Gane Ciryl Romain Jacky Gane (born April 12, 1990) is a French professional mixed martial artist and former Muay Thai fighter. He currently competes in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former Interi ...

Overview

In 2013, Fernand Lopez and his business partner, a police officer, opened CrossFight in the

12th arrondissement of Paris The 12th arrondissement of Paris (''XIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. Situated on the right bank of the River Seine, it is the easternmost arrondissement of Paris, as well as the largest by area ...

. Soon after, he renamed the gym 'MMA Factory.' The gym started with only two fighters but rapidly expanded to have over 600 students and 18 staff members as of 2018. MMA Factory was sponsored by Reebok France. The most notable fighter produced by MMA Factory is

who would become UFC Heavyweight Champion in 2021. When Ngannou was 26, he moved from

Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...

to France in order pursue his dream of becoming a

professional boxer Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional fights are supervised by a regulatory auth ...

Francis Carmont Francis Carmont (born October 10, 1981) is a French professional mixed martial artist who last competed in the Light Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2004, Carmont has competed for Bellator MMA, the UFC, and KSW. Mixed mart ...

met Ngannou and then introduced him to Lopez and the MMA factory. Lopez saw the potential of Ngannou and convinced him to try MMA even though Ngannou originally wanted to do boxing. Lopez gave Ngannou some MMA gear and allowed him to train and sleep at the gym for no cost thus starting his MMA career. However the relationship between Lopez and Ngannou has deteriorated in recent years with Lopez citing that Ngannou has ego problems and had refused to pay gym membership fees after he had achieved success. As a result, Ngannou moved to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

to train at

Xtreme Couture Xtreme Couture Mixed Martial Arts is an American mixed martial arts training organization headed by former Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC Champion and former co-founder of Team Quest, Randy Couture. Xtreme Couture was founded with the flags ...

. MMA factory has also produced

. Gane won the Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship after defeating Derrick Lewis on 7 August 2021, at UFC 265. Gane faced

for the

UFC Heavyweight Championship Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight clas ...

on 22 January 2022, at

UFC 270 ''UFC 270: Ngannou vs. Gane'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on January 22, 2022, at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Background A UFC Heavyweight Championship title unificat ...

. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Notable people

Mixed martial artists

UFC

(Former UFC Heavyweight Champion) *

(Former UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion) * Ion Cuțelaba * Veronica Macedo * Taylor Lapilus * Nassourdine Imavov * Alan Baudot

Others

Jérôme Le Banner Jérôme Philippe Le Banner (; born December 26, 1972) is a French kickboxer, mixed martial artist, and professional wrestler. Le Banner fought for most of his career in K-1 and became known for his aggressive fighting style and knockout power. ...

* Sokoudjou * Christian M'Pumbu * Rizlen Zouak * Cédric Doumbé

References

External links

Official Website
{{MMA Team List Mixed martial arts training facilities