Francis Ngannou confirms re-signing with UFC is a possibility, but not without Tyson Fury fight: “It’s not an option”

By Josh Evanoff - April 25, 2022

UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou has left the door open to return to the promotion. However, it’s not without a price.

Tyson Fury, Francis Ngannou, Boxing, UFC

‘The Predator’ was last seen in action at UFC 270 in January of this year. Ngannou captured a unanimous decision victory over his former training partner Ciryl Gane, retaining his title. Following the bout, he confirmed that he was unlikely to return to the UFC.

The news didn’t come as a huge surprise. The heavyweight champion and the promotion had been at odds for months. Prior to his bout with Gane, the promotion attempted to sue him for allegedly contacting Jake Paul’s manager.

However, Ngannou has revealed that he might return to the UFC. In an interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, the 35-year-old noted that he could come back to the octagon. His terms for the return to the cage are a little unique.

The UFC heavyweight champion could return, but only if a fight with ‘The Gypsy King’ is allowed. The two heavyweights have discussed a fight for months, and Ngannou even showed up in the ring following Fury’s most recent win.

Francis Ngannou, Dana White

(via Zuffa LLC)

“The Tyson Fury fight has to be part of the discussion. That’s not an option. It has to be part of the discussion, because if that’s not part of the discussion now, it will never be. If I sign another contract now, and basically the same model of a contract, I’m screwed. It’s not happening ever. So we have to figure out a way to implement this into a contract.” (h/t MMAFighting)

Francis Ngannou continued, “I think the UFC is a great promotion and I want to keep fighting. Tyson Fury is not my last fight. I want to keep fighting after Tyson Fury. There’s still a lot of fights out there. There’s Jon Jones, there’s a trilogy with Stipe [Miocic], there’s big fight I can do in the UFC, so I would really like that to happen. I would really like also to get to a common point. Yes, I can do Tyson Fury on my own, but what next? I would like to keep fighting.”

What do you think about Francis Ngannou’s comments? Do you want to see him fight Tyson Fury?

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM


Topics:

Boxing News Francis Ngannou Tyson Fury UFC