Francis
Ngannou knows a thing or two about big-money negotiations with
the
Ultimate Fighting Championship.
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Ngannou parted ways with the UFC in 2023 after he was unable to
come to terms with the Las Vegas-based promotion on a new deal.
Since then, he has secured a big-ticket boxing matches against
Tyson
Fury (which he nearly won) and Anthony
Joshua while also signing a contract with
Professional Fighters League that provided much of the freedom
and perks he desired. When he was still with the UFC, a showdown
with current heavyweight king Jon Jones was
a hot topic. The narrative currently presented by the UFC is that
Ngannou left the promotion because he didn’t want to face Jones.
However, when “Bones” was on a three-year hiatus and Ngannou was an
active UFC champion, the story was framed quite differently.
Jones returned to action at UFC 309,
where he successfully defended the heavyweight crown with a
third-round stoppage of Stipe
Miocic at Madison Square Garden in New York on Nov. 16. “Bones”
has been accused of avoiding a fight against interim heavyweight
king Tom
Aspinall, but in the aftermath of his latest victory, Jones
indicated that he might accept the matchup if the money was right.
A little more than three years ago, Jones tweeted “show me the
money” in regards to a potential Ngannou fight after the
Cameroonian-born Frenchman vanquished Miocic in 2021. At the time,
Ngannou was
understanding as to why Jones would want more compensation for
a move to heavyweight — even if UFC CEO Dana White
was not.
Fast forward to the present day, and while White is now in Jones’
corner, much of the MMA community has grown weary of his dismissal
of Aspinall. However, Ngannou offers a different perspective of
what might be going on behind the scenes.
“I think there’s a negotiation situation here that’s involved that
we don’t know all the ups and downs,” Ngannou told TMZ Sports. “We
all know the situation that they use in the negotiation to say, ‘Oh
no, he doesn’t want to fight this guy – he’s scared.’ And then
that’s how the machine works.
“He’s [Jones] in the position to claim what he wants, as he said.
He said, ‘Aspinall needs that fight. I don’t need it.’ And when you
look at it, it’s pretty much true. There’s nothing that he’s going
to have more winning that fight other than money. But for Aspinall,
who’s someone coming and trying to cement his way in the division,
that will be everything.”
With legacy in mind, Jones has indicated that a fight against
current UFC light heavyweight champ Alex
Pereira might be more enticing than a title unification bout
against Aspinall. Ngannou admits that Pereira might be a better
stylistic matchup for Jones, but it’s also important to take a
fight that motivates him.
“Honestly, I would rather see him face whomever he wants to face,”
Ngannou said. “I think Aspinall would be the more challenging fight
because Aspinall responds to the ground game better than Pereira.
Aspinall would respond better in the wrestling than Pereira.
“[Jones] can do whatever he wants. It’s his call. When you get at
that point, you only fight if you want to fight. And you better
have a fight that you want, or a good reason.”
While Jones vs. Ngannou remains arguably the biggest dream matchup
in the heavyweight division, “The Predator” is taking a realistic
view on it’s chances of happening.
“I think for right now the only option is in the [PFL] roster,
that’s just how it is…it’s not what I would want or like to have,”
he said. “It doesn’t matter much. The reality is, we both know we
both want this fight, for sure. And it would be a good fight for
us. There’s more to this, like legacy and everything. I mean, I can
finish my career at some point, but it will always be great to know
that, OK, you faced that guy – that guy who is the best in the
sport, to ever do the sport.”
Though Ngannou gives Jones his due respect as the MMA GOAT, he
believes it’s too soon to declare the UFC champ as the best ever in
the heavyweight division. After all, Jones has only bested Ciryl Gane
and Miocic since moving up from 205 pounds.
“Even though Stipe lost the fight, you can’t disregard what he has
done as a heavyweight. People forget really quick,” Ngannou said.
“For me, Jon might be the best fighter overall, but I personally
cannot classify him as the best heavyweight of all-time. Come on,
man. He’s established as a fighter, but not as a heavyweight.
That’s my take.”