Impa Kasanganay is the man that the UFC cut just for him to win a million dollars in the PFL years later. As of now, Kasanganay getting knocked out via a devastating kick from Joaquin Buckley has been one of the most-rewatched UFC videos of all time, but the fighter has come a long way from then. And you can get to know him much better when he sits down with us for an Exclusive ES Fancast interview.
Kasanganay’s career has been full of ups and downs, including going into Dana White‘s contender series twice just to gain a UFC contract for himself. In fact, even after losing his footing with the promotion, Kasanganay was faced with difficult choices. Here’s more about him.
Impa Kasanganay and his road to a million dollars
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Impa Kasangnay started out in grand fashion but it felt like it was all in vain when he failed to get a UFC contract in 2019 even after defeating his opponent Kailan Hill via a unanimous decision. In 2020, he was once again invited to the Contender Series where after defeating Anthony Adams, he finally secured a contract with the promotion.
However, the events that unfolded later on would put him in a difficult position yet again. He managed to defeat Maki Pitolo but then was knocked out by the spinning kick from Buckley that seemingly sent him into a different dimension. A few fights later, in 2021, it was announced that Kasanganay was no longer with the UFC.
In 2023, Kasanganay had signed up with the PFL and secured multiple wins on his way to the title fight. When he faced Josh Silveira for the light heavyweight bout at the world championship, he managed to defeat him via a unanimous decision to secure the $1 million prize. In the end, he was just happy to be with a different promotion.
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“MMA is my ministry.” He said later. “I love what I get to do, and it came down to me saying I’m going to trust God’s plan for my life. I really didn’t have any more money. I spent everything moving to Florida. Got a cool apartment, thought I was going to be in the UFC for the long haul. It wasn’t in God’s plan . . . I’m so grateful the UFC cut me. It became a blessing. Look where we are today.”
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The ES Exclusive fancast
Now, Impa Kasanganay is set to fight perhaps one of his toughest opponents, Johnny Eblen of Bellator. The ES Exclusive Fancast interview will help shed more light on the fighter’s upcoming bout on February 24. Eblen is a fighter who could be considered just as accomplished as Kasanganay or perhaps even more.
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The ES Exclusive Fancast will help expose more of the fighter’s life to the fans on the 10th of February. We’ll ask him questions regarding his mindset leading up to the fight and how his struggles with a “protection job” right after he moved to Florida for the UFC. While both the UFC and his other job didn’t last, Kasanganay finding his footing in the PFL did all the wonders he needed. Watch the ES Exclusive Fancast here once it goes live!