The fight, to be held at Carnival City on October 2, will see Franaconda trying to take the belt from a fighter who remains undefeated with a nine-win streak to his name.
Fighting out of Sunninghill, Johannesburg, Pena recently dropped from the featherweight division to bantamweight to allow training mate Boyd Allen, current featherweight title holder, a shot at the brass ring without having to defeat his friend.
This drop put him firmly in Francois’ sights with the XKT and Rio Grappling fighter, who has won his last four fights, looking to take the title away from him when they meet in the mixed martial arts (MMA) hexagon next month.
The fight will be on the main card and Francois comments, “It’s going to be a tough fight.
“Demarte is a good wrestler and he is unbeaten for a reason but my grappling should be good enough to beat his wrestling.”
He adds that he has been working on his fitness as Demarte likes to go all five rounds, explaining that a title fight consists of five rounds lasting five minutes each.
“I have worked on my fitness to ensure I can go all five rounds.
“However, I like to finish my fights and will be aiming to finish him off long before the end of the fifth round with either a knock out or submission.”
Francois has also been working on his stand-up skills with sparring mate, and fellow Springs fighter, JP Kruger since Demarte has been “talking a lot about my lack of stand-up skills so I want to prove I have all the skills needed to defeat him.”
Speaking about what the title means to him, Francois says: “It would be a dream come true because it means that you are the best bantamweight fighter not only in South Africa but in the whole of Africa.
“This is basically what I have been working so hard for.”
He adds, “I am determined to win the fight and, because he is from Angola, get the belt back into South African hands.”
