Francis Ngannou

UFC President Dana White confirmed following UFC Vegas 67 that Francis Ngannou is no longer with the promotion, and that the UFC has waived its matching ...

The UFC President reiterated that Jones was also willing to fight anybody, and not just for the title. “He literally didn’t care who it was on the roster, and not for the title. “This guy’s worked hard, and he feels like he’s in a position right now to fight lesser competition for more money. “We offered Francis a deal that would have made him the highest paid heavyweight in the history of the company. White was referring to the billboard-sized banner at the Las Vegas arena, which revealed both the match-up and championship stakes for UFC 285 on March 4, 2023. Ciryl Gane](https://cagesidepress.com/2023/01/14/t-mobile-arena-billboard-featuring-jones-vs-gane-lights-social-media/) heavyweight title fight at UFC 285 in March, the writing was on the wall.

UFC President Dana White announced on Saturday that the promotion has released heavyweight champion Frances Ngannou after the two sides could not reach a...

what he made for the UFC...

It's prize fighting and the prize is money, not being taken advantage of by the UFC. [will now make](https://twitter.com/SportsCenter/status/1614460533742125058) his heavyweight debut on March 4 in Las Vegas for the vacant UFC heavyweight title against Ciryl Gane. Highest paid HW doesn't equal highest paid fighter and we know the highest paid UFC fighter was also underpaid vs. However, there was public hope earlier this week that a fight between him and Jones could still go down in March. White says they offered him a deal that would have made him the highest paid HW ever. White says they are going to wave any right to match and let him go elsewhere.

Heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou is released from the UFC. Jon Jones will return at UFC 285 to meet Ciryl Gane for the vacant title.

- Viviane Araujo vs. - Jon Jones vs. Gane lost a title unification bout to Ngannou, his former teammate, at UFC 270 in January 2022. “We’ve been negotiating with (Ngannou) for more than two years,” White said, and added that Ngannou’s knee, which recently was surgically repaired, could be an issue for him, as well. That same venue is set to host the March 4 event, which will air on pay-per-view following prelims expected for ESPN and ESPN+. He’ll meet Gane (11-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) for the belt the UFC has stripped from

Dana White says the UFC has released Francis Ngannou from all contractual obligations and waived matching rights, which now allows the former heavyweight ...

“I think he doesn’t want to take the risk,” White said of Ngannou. “We did everything we could to get him to take the deal. You’d be the highest paid heavyweight ever in heavyweight history, or you think there’s more money out there to fight somebody who isn’t the greatest of all time, somebody who is a lesser opponent. “You’re going to fight arguably the greatest fighter of all time. “More than [Brock] Lesnar, more than anybody, and he turned the deal down. As a result, White said, Ngannou is officially a free agent with the UFC waiving all rights to match any other offers.

A graphic has been displayed in Las Vegas that shows a heavyweight title fight between Jones and Ciryl Gane that is scheduled for UFC 285 on March 4.

The former pound-for-pound No.1, who recently hinted at his return by tweeting: "Champion 2023", hasn't fought since defending the UFC light-heavyweight title for the last time against Dominick Reyes in February 2020. Gane missed out on his chance to win the heavyweight title when he was outpointed by Ngannou at UFC 270. Ngannou, 36, has been caught up in a contract crisis with the UFC since defending his title against former training partner Gane last January.

LAS VEGAS—Francis Ngannou is no longer the UFC's heavyweight champion. UFC president Dana White announced Saturday that the promotion was unable to come to ...

Meanwhile, Jones (26-1 MMA, 20-1 UFC) is one of the most decorated champions in UFC history with 11 successful title defenses of the promotion's light heavyweight title across two title reigns. UFC president Dana White announced Saturday that the promotion was unable to come to terms with Ngannou for a new contract and has instead elected to release him from the promotion. We're going to give up our right to match, and he can go wherever he wants and do whatever he wants.

An unconfirmed leak announced the return of Jon Jones in the heavyweight division and has the pros and fans discussing the fight.

“If they make this fight on March 4th, it will be for the vacant title. The UFC has been trying to make this fight for a while now, [but several impediments kept popping up](https://www.essentiallysports.com/ufc-mma-news-ufc-hw-champion-francis-ngannou-may-already-have-entered-free-agency-reports/). Helwani felt sorry for the employee who leaked the news. With the news spreading like wildfire, leading MMA analyst Ariel Helwani shared his thoughts via Instagram. ‘Bones’ was speaking after training with former UFC champion ADVERTISEMENT

Dana White announced that heavyweight champ Francis Ngannou will be released from his contract after turning down an offer that would have made him the ...

He has only ever been knocked down once, by Aussie Tai Tuivasa, and has a record of 9-1 - his only loss coming to Ngannou last January. Ngannou is arguably the biggest free agent in MMA history and may now pursue his longstanding boxing ambitions. 'We offered Ngannou a deal that would make him the highest-paid heavyweight of all time,' said White.

Heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou is released from the UFC. Jon Jones will return at UFC 285 to meet Ciryl Gane for the vacant title.

MMA Fighting reacts to Dana White announcing Francis Ngannou being an outright free agent and that Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane will headline UFC 285 for the ...

[UFC Vegas 67](https://www.mmafighting.com/fight-card/1356/ufc-vegas-67-imavov-vs-strickland), MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck and Shaheen Al-Shatti react to the Jones vs. An audio-only version of the show can be found below and on [Apple Podcasts](https://go.redirectingat.com/?xcust=___sb__p_23278936__t_w__r_google.com__d_D&id=66960X1516590&xs=1&url=https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/id320642139&referrer=sbnation.com), [Google Podcasts](https://podcasts.google.com/?feed=aHR0cDovL2ZlZWRzLmZlZWRidXJuZXIuY29tL1RoZU1tYUhvdXJXaXRoQXJpZWxIZWx3YW5p), [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/27Z2RR39rjGrRcV1DiQ40J?si=5ZS0Lje7QbWITUd60cOb8g), and [Stitcher](https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/mma-fighting). Gane fight, Strickland’s victory, [Dan Ige](https://www.mmafighting.com/fighter/4339/dan-ige)’s incredible walk-off KO against [Damon Jackson](https://www.mmafighting.com/fighter/2134/damon-jackson), [Umar Nurmagomedov](https://www.mmafighting.com/fighter/5039/umar-nurmagomedov)’s frightening finish of [Raoni Barcelos](https://www.mmafighting.com/fighter/4232/raoni-barcelos) in the main card opener, and more. Where does Strickland go from a huge short notice win? [Sean Strickland](https://www.mmafighting.com/fighter/2072/sean-strickland) went out to the octagon on less than one week’s notice and defeated the surging [Nassourdine Imavov](https://www.mmafighting.com/fighter/5457/nassourdine-imavov) in the main event of the UFC’s first card of 2023.

Ngannou will depart the UFC after being embroiled in a contract feud with the promotion, which will see him vacate his heavyweight title.

[YouTube channel.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLgjkiMp1S4) "And the reason I tell you it's disrespectful. And UFC legend Chael Sonnen suggested that his contract demands were unfair and were also unlikely to be agreed to along the stretch. The heavyweight champion wants to fight in the boxing ring and r "And he turned the deal down. It was expected that the Cameroon star would return to the octagon against undefeated superstar Jon Jones if he was able to agree a fresh deal with the promotion. UFC kingpin Dana White has now confirmed the news at yesterday's press conference, where he suggested Ngannou was offered a new mega-money deal but turned it down.

Francis Ngannou will be released from his contract and is no longer the UFC heavyweight champion after he turned down a contract that would have made him ...

“We did everything we could to make the fight happen and give him the fight. He can go wherever he wants and do whatever he wants.” Ngannou had been in negotiations for a new agreement for two years, White said, and plans were in place for the 36-year-old to fight Jones.

Dana White says Francis Ngannou would've been the highest paid heavyweight in UFC history, but rejected the contract. Now he's a free agent.

And I think that probably has a lot to do with it as far as Francis is concerned. “We can’t continue to hold up the division and not come to an agreement with this guy. We’re going to give up our right to match, and he can go and do whatever he wants. Ngannou turned down the UFC’s offer for a contract renewal, White said, and left behind his heavyweight title for the chance to become arguably the biggest free agent in combat sports. “You’ll have to ask Francis that question, but in my opinion that’s what it is. He feels he’s in a good position where he can fight lesser opponents and make more money.

The MMA community was left in disbelief after news of Francis Ngannou's UFC release and Jon Jones would fight Ciryl Gane for vacant gold.

[January 15, 2023] Gane the correct fight to make in the aftermath of a failed deal? That opened the door for Jones (26-1 MMA, 20-1 UFC) vs. Did the UFC make a misstep in failing to bring back Ngannou? [as a result, parted ways](https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2023/01/ufc-285-news-jon-jones-returns-vs-ciryl-gane-francis-ngannou-released-vacant-heavyweight-title).

Ciryl Gane offers his reaction to the news that Francis Ngannou is out of the UFC and the opportunity to become undisputed heavyweight champion in an ...

“More when I started MMA, because I’m a fan of every sport in MMA, and when you look at a guy like Jon Jones, who’s well-rounded like this, you really appreciate it. “Both are going to help me grow my career, and both are really exciting,” Gane said. Because I’ve never had this belt, and because fighting against this guy is going to be really crazy.” The main event at UFC 285 also serves as Gane’s second opportunity to become undisputed heavyweight champion after he came up short in his previous bid against Ngannou. “I looked to the future. “I know I’ve got good footwork at first, I think I’m a little bit more well-rounded [than Ngannou],” Gane said. “When I started watching this, Jon Jones was one of my favorite fighters,” Gane revealed. Taking on somebody like Jones is exactly what Gane has always wanted, and he’s bubbling over with anticipation as he prepares for their matchup in March. Just a few days later, however, Gane got the news that he will face Jones at UFC 285 on March 4 to crown a new UFC heavyweight champion. “Me, also, I am not like that. “We’re going to wait how long? I don’t know exactly, but it’s not my worry.”