Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou is set to face undefeated WBC champion Tyson Fury in a major boxing match, a move that led to his departure from UFC as they would not let him pursue this opportunity; UFC president Dana White has subsequently shown interest in booking a fight between Fury and new UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones, despite criticizing Nagnnou’s push to fight a big-name boxer.
Francis Ngannou wasn’t unaware of UFC’s efforts to snatch away the Tyson Fury superfight that eventually went to MMA’s lineal heavyweight champion. Ngannou is prepared to battle the undefeated WBC champion Tyson Fury in a spectacular boxing match on Oct. 28 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Pursuing a boxing match with Fury had always been on the former UFC heavyweight champion’s wish list— and was a major factor in his unprecedented departure from UFC earlier this year as UFC officials wouldn’t allow Ngannou to seek a boxing payday while under contract.
But after Ngannou inked a handsome deal to resume his MMA career with PFL, UFC president Dana White suddenly developed interest in arranging a fight between Fury and the new UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones. Furthermore, White’s interest was piqued a short while after he had criticized Ngannou’s aspirations of fighting a big-name boxer and claimed that he doesn’t book “gimmick fights”. Ngannou’s longtime representative, Marquel Martin, viewed White’s contradictory statements as rather revealing.
“I think they really wanted to just mess up our chances, to be quite honest. I think, for whatever reason, there’s a sour taste in their mouth when it comes to Francis.”, said Martin. The UFC has notably sponsored numerous matchups that could be considered gimmick fights throughout its history, ranging from signing big names like James Toney and CM Punk to arranging the incredibly lucrative Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor boxing bout in 2017—a fight that remains one of the highest-selling pay-per-views of all time.
Ngannou had spent two years trying to secure the Fury fight under the UFC banner, Martin confessed. “After Stipe [Miocic], it was supposed to be Jon Jones, right?,” Martin said. “I think I tweeted something a while ago, you may find it, but I literally wrote it down. ‘Stipe, then we’re going to take care of Jon Jones, then we’re going to go for Tyson Fury.’ In that order.” But he suspected that the massive wealth McGregor earned from his Mayweather bout and its disruptive impact on McGregor’s UFC career could explain the promotion’s hesitance. Martin further stated, “I used to spend a lot of time trying to unscramble the reasons of why they do things, and now I don’t spend too much time on it at all”.