Getty Francis Ngannou is the UFC's heavyweight champion.
UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou revealed to Heavy last year that he was frustrated with the UFC over not getting a title shot and that he was considering fighting out his contract with the promotional company so he could seek work elsewhere. Ngannou ultimately didn’t have to play that card after finally getting his chance to grab gold against Stipe Miocic at UFC 260, but now “The Predator” seems concerned about how much money he’s making in the UFC in comparison to other combat sports stars.
Actually, Ngannou is concerned about how much money he’s making in the UFC compared to YouTuber Logan Paul, who Ngannou says made $20 million for fighting retired boxing legend Floyd Mayweather Jr. in a boxing exhibition bout on Sunday night in Miami.
Ngannou posted, “It’s crazy to think that Logan Paul (0-1) just made $20M on a boxing exhibition. WHAT ARE WE DOING WRONG?”
It’s crazy to think that Logan Paul (0-1) just made $20M on a boxing exhibition.
WHAT ARE WE DOING WRONG? 🤔
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Ngannou Watched Mayweather vs. Paul
Mayweather and Paul fought all eight rounds on Sunday.
The fight technically didn’t have a winner, but Mayweather clearly outclassed the larger and younger star.
But Paul sort of won, too. He went the distance with the 50-0 boxing champ and made a ton of money for his efforts.
Ngannou saw that, and now he seems frustrated with his pay in comparison to Paul’s. The UFC champ let the world know it after Mayweather vs. Paul was over.
While the UFC’s latest and maybe scariest heavyweight champion ever didn’t threaten this time to fight out his contract to seek work somewhere else, he’s claimed the idea before so it could show up again.
Heck, former UFC star Cris Cyborg saw his tweet and invited him to pull that move and move over to Bellator MMA. She said, “Fight out your contract and join us @SHOsports”.
@francis_ngannou Fight out your contract and join us @SHOsports
So Ngannou asked his question, but UFC president Dana White might be the only one who can answer it.
That, or Ngannou might someday be heeding Cyborg’s advice.
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Ngannou Denied Superfight vs. Jones
Ngannou has long desired a superfight against UFC superstar Jon Jones, but it doesn’t appear the UFC is heading in that direction.
Jones keeps training for the megafight, but White has repeatedly said since Ngannou defeated Miocic at UFC 260 that his first title defense would be a rematch against Derrick Lewis.
Lewis defeated Ngannou by decision at UFC 226 in 2018, but now Ngannou has won five straight fights and he’s beaten everyone by knockout.
Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones fighting for the heavyweight title is still on @arielhelwani’s wish list 📝
The Ngannou vs. Lewis rematch hasn’t been announced yet, but it seems to be on the way. It’s an interesting fight that will feature two of the hardest-hitting fighters in UFC history, but Ngannou has stayed curiously silent about the prospect of facing Lewis again over getting his dream fight vs. Jones.
Ngannou vs. Jones would be the bigger fight, and it’s the one Ngannou has openly campaigned for since Jones first announced the idea last summer.
But Ngannou is probably facing Lewis next, and that could be just another thing that adds to the champ’s growing frustration with the UFC.
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