Francis Ngannou News

Adam Martin - November 7, 2021

UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou completely ignored interim champion Ciryl Gane when they encountered each other backstage at UFC 268. Gane won the interim heavyweight title back at UFC 265 in August when he knocked out Derrick Lewis in the third round of the fight. Remember, the UFC had originally booked Ngannou against Lewis in that fight, but the promotion created an interim title after Ngannou was not able to defend his title in August. Instead of Ngannou facing Lewis for the undisputed heavyweight title, it was Gane who went in there and beat Lewis.

Adam D Martin - October 18, 2021

UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou says he is not as excited about fighting interim champ Ciryl Gane over superstar Jon Jones. Ngannou knocked out former champ Stipe Miocic back at UFC 260 in March to win the heavyweight title. He was then expected to fight Jones in what would have been one of the biggest fights the UFC could make, but the fight fell apart. Jones and the UFC were not able to come to an agreement on a contract and then Ngannou was supposed to fight Derrick Lewis at UFC 265 in August. However, that fight also fell apart when Ngannou and the UFC couldn’t come to an agreement on a new deal, and Gane ended up fighting Lewis on the card and knocked him out to win the interim belt. With Gane now as the interim champ, the plan is for him to fight Ngannou for the belt when the two meet at UFC 270.

Adam D Martin - October 17, 2021

Boxing analyst Teddy Atlas shared his thoughts on a potential Tyson Fury vs. Francis Ngannou super fight in the boxing ring. Atlas is a boxing legend in his own right but he has moved more into the world of MMA analysis as well in recent years. Speaking to Submission Radio in a recent interview, Atlas was asked what he thinks about a potential fight between the top heavyweight boxer in Fury and MMA’s top heavyweight in Ngannou. As far as Atlas goes, while he has respect for Ngannou, he believes that it would be Fury getting his hand raised in a boxing match.

Christopher Taylor - October 16, 2021

UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou shared two “dream opponents” that he would have enjoyed fighting in their prime. Ngannou (16-3 MMA) is set to defend his belt against current interim title holder Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 in January. Ahead of his highly anticipated showdown with the undefeated Frenchman, ‘The Predator’ made an appearance on Jeff’s Barbershop where he was asked if there were any heavyweight legends he wished he could have faced in their prime.

Andrew Whitelaw - October 13, 2021

Francis Ngannou has a very strong claim to being ‘the baddest man on the planet’ and he wants to get paid accordingly. The UFC heavyweight champion will defend his belt against Ciryl Gane at UFC 270, but he will earn significantly less in that fight than his boxing counterparts. The Cameroonian recently appeared on the MMA hour, where he was asked if he was unhappy that the likes of Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder scored a much bigger payday. To which he replied,

Adam D Martin - October 6, 2021

Two title fights featuring Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane and Israel Adesanya vs. Robert Whittaker 2 are being targeted for UFC 270. According to the French outlet “La Sueur,” UFC 270 is being planned to take place on January 22 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The fight is not official yet, but the UFC plans on having the UFC heavyweight title unified that night between the champ Ngannou and the interim champ Gane. As for the co-main event, the plan is to have to rematch between Adesanya and Whittaker. Overall, with these two title fights at the top of the bill, UFC 270 is shaping up to be a stacked card already. MMA journalist Aaron Bronsteter added the following:

Adam D Martin - September 8, 2021

UFC president Dana White shared a history lesson for UFC heavyweight champ Francis Ngannou, saying “It’s pretty simple how this all works.” Ngannou is currently involved in a contract dispute with the UFC that is keeping him out of the Octagon at the present time. “The Predator” defeated Stipe Miocic by KO back in March to win the heavyweight belt, and for his first title defense, the plan was for Ngannou to fight former UFC light heavyweight champion, Jon Jones, in a superfight. However, Jones could not come to an agreement with the UFC and the fight against Ngannou was scrapped.

Adam D Martin - September 2, 2021

The upcoming Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane UFC heavyweight title fight is being targeted for January, according to Ngannou’s coach. Ngannou knocked out Stipe Miocic back at UFC 260 in March to become the new UFC heavyweight champion. “The Predator” was expected to fight former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones in his first title defense, but when Jones and the UFC got into a much-publicized contract dispute with Jones, the matchmakers changed gears to a Ngannou vs. Derrick Lewis title fight at UFC 265 in August. However, that date did not work for Ngannou, and the UFC instead decided to give Gane the fight against Lewis with the interim heavyweight belt on the line, which Gane ended up winning via third-round TKO.

Adam D Martin - August 20, 2021

UFC president Dana White provided an update on the Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane heavyweight bout, saying “we’re working on it right now.” Ngannou defeated former champ Stipe Miocic back at UFC 260 in March to claim the promotion’s heavyweight championship. However, the UFC created an interim belt to be fought for between Gane and Derrick Lewis at UFC 265 in August, and Gane ended up winning that fight via third-round TKO to earn a title unification bout against Ngannou.

Adam D Martin - August 19, 2021

Heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou opened up on contract negotiations with the UFC, saying “there’s a lot going on behind the scenes.” Ngannou knocked out Stipe Miocic back in March to become the new UFC heavyweight champion. Initially, the fight to make was Ngannou against Jon Jones, but Jones and the UFC couldn’t come to financial terms and that fight was called off. Instead, the UFC wanted to book Ngannou against Derrick Lewis at UFC 265. However, Ngannou couldn’t fight on that date and the UFC instead brought in Ciryl Gane, who knocked out Lewis to become the new interim UFC heavyweight champion — just three months after Ngannou won the belt.

Drake Riggs - August 18, 2021

Francis Ngannou has already had a unique title reign despite its youth. The undisputed UFC heavyweight champion captured the crown in his rematch with Stipe Miocic in March at UFC 260. Knocking the Ohio native out cold in the second round, Ngannou seemed destined for a mega-fight with former light heavyweight titleholder and all-time great, Jon Jones.

Cole Shelton - August 17, 2021

Francis Ngannou says Ciryl Gane knows what’s in store when they fight. At UFC 265, Gane TKO’d Derrick Lewis to become the interim heavyweight champion. However, many criticized that the fight was for the interim strap when Ngannou had just won the belt back in March. Yet, he says none of that matters as everyone knows he is the real king.

Adam D Martin - August 11, 2021

UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou didn’t give enough credit to MMA Factory for his career success, says former coach Fernand Lopez. Lopez is the head trainer and founder of MMA Factory in Paris, France. The gym is home to new UFC interim heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane, not to mention several other UFC fighters including middleweight Nassourdine Imavov and lightweight Fares Ziam. Of course, Ngannou used to train there before he made the decision to come to the United States and train in Las Vegas. Although Ngannou first came to the UFC as a member of Lopez’s stable, according to his former coach, he has rarely given MMA Factory any credit in interviews, even though Lopez says that he is the one who got him in the UFC in the first place.

Adam Martin - August 8, 2021

UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou said that Ciryl Gane and Derrick Lewis were fighting for the No. 2 contender spot at UFC 265. Ngannou is the UFC heavyweight champion and he was initially unhappy that Dana White booked this interim title fight between Gane and Lewis for UFC 265 given that he just beat Stipe Miocic back in March to win the title. In any case, Ngannou knows that the winner of Gane vs. Lewis will be next up for the belt, and so he watched the fight on Saturday night. Before the fight started, he shared a video where he made the joke that Gane and Lewis were fighting not for a real UFC belt, but rather for the No. 2 contender spot in the UFC heavyweight rankings, since Miocic is still technically the No. 1 contender in the division.

Adam D Martin - August 8, 2021

The betting odds have been revealed for the proposed Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane UFC heavyweight title unification bout. Gane defeated Derrick Lewis via third-round TKO to become the new UFC interim heavyweight champion, giving him the next crack at the champ Ngannou. With Gane vs. Ngannou now lined up for their title unification bout, the oddsmakers were quick to release an opening line for the fight. Take a look at the opening odds from BetOnline, which features this heavyweight title bout between Ngannou and Gane opening as a Pick ’em.

Christopher Taylor - August 8, 2021

Dana White claims Vince McMahon couldn’t have wrote a better script for the UFC’s future heavyweight title unification bout between Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane. Gane (10-0 MMA) captured the promotions interim heavyweight title at tonight’s UFC 265 event in Houston by scoring a third round TKO victory over Derrick Lewis. It was a dominant performance from the Frenchman and one that has now set him up on a collision course with Francis Ngannou.

Chris Taylor - August 7, 2021

MMA legend Randy Couture is critical of Dana White and company creating an interim heavyweight title, calling the act a disservice to Francis Ngannou. Ngannou (16-3 MMA) captured the promotions heavyweight title back at March’s UFC 260 event, this after scoring a second round knockout victory over Stipe Miocic. The win marked his fifth stoppage in a row, as ‘The Predator’ had previously recorded four-straight first round finishes.

Chris Taylor - August 7, 2021

Dana White has offered a new explanation for tonight’s interim heavyweight title fight at UFC 265, drawing a quick response from Francis Ngannou. Ciryl Gane and Derrick Lewis will collide in tonight’s event headliner in Houston with the promotions interim heavyweight title up for grabs. It is undoubtedly an exciting matchup, but given the fact that Francis Ngannou just won the heavyweight title back in March, many fans are not happy with the interim strap being associated with the bout.