Francis Ngannou laid his 15-month-old son to rest on Friday following his tragic passing.
The boxer who was formerly a UFC star revealed Kobe’s untimely death on social media earlier this week, however the cause of death is still unknown.
Former UFC world champion Kamaru Usman and legendary Cameroonian football player Samuel Eto’o also attended the funeral and paid their respects.
In a devastating Instagram post, Ngannou announced the death of his kid, writing, “Too soon to leave but yet he’s gone.” Kobe, my companion, my little boy, was a happy, vibrant person. He’s dead now, laying there. I kept calling out his name, but he didn’t answer.
“Beside him, I was my best self, and now I don’t know who I am.” When life hits us where it hurts the most, it is so unjust.
Francis Ngannou mourns his 15-month-old son at his funeral after his sad passing this week
Cameroonian football legend Samuel Eto’o was among the people who paid their respects
The heart-breaking funeral for Ngannou’s 15-month-old son Kobe took place on Friday
đĽ Samuel Etoâo prĂŠsent Ă la morgue pour soutenir Francis Ngannou après que ce dernier ait perdu son fils il y a quelques jours. đď¸đâ¤ď¸đ¨đ˛ pic.twitter.com/4WZ3Jk3sQw
— AllezLesLions (@AllezLesLions) May 2, 2024
‘How do you deal with such a thing? How can you live with it? Please help me if you have an idea because I really don’t know what to do and how to deal with this.’
Following the loss of Kobe, the likes of Anthony Joshua and Conor McGregor paid tribute to Ngannou.
Joshua, Ngannou’s most recent opponent, commented on the Cameroonian’s Instagram post by saying;Â ‘May the memories you shared bring you comfort.’
While UFC star McGregor, who trained with Ngannou, wrote; ‘Absolutely gutted reading this Francis! I can only imagine the pain you are in right now I am so sorry hearing this news.
‘I pray God has the best and safest place in heaven for him, until you meet again.’
There were also tributes by others within the boxing world, including Manny Pacquiao, Cain Velasquez and Tony Bellow.
Ngannou revealed his 15-month-old son Kobe had died in a heartbreaking post on his Instagram account on Monday
Ngannou shared the news to his seven million Instagram followers, with the post receiving over 35,000 comments overall
The 37-year-old grew up in Batie, Cameroon and his humble upbringing saw him forced to walk six miles to go to school every day and was digging sand mines when he was just 10 years old.
Later in his life he made the journey from Cameroon to the north of the continent – travelling through Nigeria, Niger and Algeria before reaching Morocco.
Ngannou eventually settled in Paris, where he met the trainer Fernand Lopez, who would convince him to take up MMA instead of boxing.
MMA gave him a spotlight and he rose from those humble beginnings to become UFC heavyweight champion in 2020, defeating Stipe Miocic.
Anthony Joshua (left) has led the condolences to Francis Ngannou (right) after the passing of his son
He retired from the sport two years later, with a record of 17 wins and three losses, including 12 knockouts.
After retiring Ngannou switched vocations and transitioned into boxing, and has already fought the two top British heavyweights.
In his maiden fight, he took Tyson Fury all the way and knocked the heavyweight boxer to the mat, before being defeated by the Gypsy King on a points win.
Then earlier this year, he stepped in the ring with Joshua, earning a ÂŁ15m payday but suffering a brutal loss when the Brit boxer knocked the rookie fighter out inside two rounds.
