UFC President Dana White is aware of at least some of what’s going on with rival promotion PFL these days, including the signing of UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou.
White just doesn’t understand that.
“Based on what I know about the deal, which isn’t much, it doesn’t make sense to me,” White told media gathered at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas after UFC Vegas 73 on Saturday, when asked about Ngannou signing with the pro warriors. league. “You’re going to pay the guy not to fight for a year. And it’s already been like 18 months. He’s fought three times in the last three years. It’s just not what we do here. It’s not what we do.”
Rest assured, this is partly because Wyatt does damage control, and that’s very much his job. As White later admitted, the UFC, primarily Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell, tried very hard to retain Ngannou’s services, drinking and eating him on numerous occasions.
And so White, always the promoter, has returned to the narrative that Ngannou is not willing to take risks (despite taking a solid gamble, truth be told, walking away from the UFC). Although the UFC exec was keen to note he didn’t call Ngannou out of fear.
“The day we released him, I knew exactly what was going to happen. Francis wanted not to take a risk. He didn’t want to take a risk. He had years to make the fight between Jones and Nganoo happen,” said White, who had years to make the fight between Jones and Nganoo happen. “After what happened with Cyril Jean, I don’t blame him. I think the result would have been exactly the same, as I am sure most of you do, and I think Francis does too.”
Ngannou defeated Gane by decision when the pair faced off at UFC 270 last year.
“The media makes it sound like I’m saying he’s afraid of him [Jones]White added. “I don’t think he’s afraid of anyone. It’s just the fact that he doesn’t want to take any chances.”
White reiterated that, in his view, the Popular Front deal was meaningless. To be fair to White, many wondered if the PFL would eventually emerge a winner, having paid in the high seven figures, per fight, to Ngannou – as well as agreeing to a $2 million fee for his first opponent. Ngannou is also expected to compete in boxing before stepping into the PFL cage.
“The PFL is going to pay this guy to train him for a boxing match that might not even happen, that they might not even be in. How does that make sense? Anthony Joshua called it a fight gimmick this week.”
White suggested that one of the big problems in boxing right now are glitchy fights, adding that these are simply not what the UFC does. “She’s had fights with the best fighters in the world, fights people want to see.”
Noting that Ngannou could have struck a deal with the UFC, White added “Francis thinks he’s in a position where he thinks he’s got the Conor McGregor-Mayweather fight on his hands. Which he doesn’t. That fight was a deal for life.” It was a Mayweather-McGregor fight that Wyatt admits he didn’t want, but fans did, and it was at the right time and place. “So we did it. MMA guys verus boxers doesn’t make any sense to me. But I know he thinks there’s all this money in it. I object. I don’t think there is.”
Time will tell about this part. So far, Jake Paul has been making good money boxing “MMA guys” like Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley, Anderson Silva, and soon, Nate Diaz – all former UFC stars. None of them have defeated Paul yet, and that’s not a good look for the UFC among casual fans, although anyone paying attention knows that Paul does box much older opponents, and considerably smaller opponents toward the end of their careers. And he still almost lost to Silva.
“I don’t have a beef with the PFL,” White said of the league, which was born out of the WSOF in 2018. “You know me, if I don’t like you, be it [Oscar] De La Hoya or another organization or whatever it is, I’m not backing down. I’ll let you have it. But what they do makes no sense to me.”
“Their business strategy. I heard they’re collecting money now, 280 million, 300 million, I don’t know what number, from the Middle East. I’ve done a lot of business in the Middle East. These guys are sharp. They know what they’re doing. I don’t know who’s going to give them 280 million.” Dollars, because I hear they’re buying Bellator, right? You’re an organization that burns money, has no ratings and doesn’t sell any tickets, and you’re going to raise 280 million to buy a company that burns cash, sells no tickets and has no ratings? Sounds totally genius to me.”
Bellator rumors have been circulating for a while now. Promotion officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Cageside Press. Bellator found ratings success earlier this year, however, eclipsing one million viewers on broadcast network CBS for Fedor Emelianenko’s retirement battle.
The UFC drew a similar number to UFC Charlotte last week.
“I know how this story ends. I understand what Francis is doing,” White continued. “I wish the PFL all the best in the world, I wish them all the best in the world, that’s just not what we do here.”
Later, White remarked that Nganno “doesn’t even fight their champions. He wants to box. He’s signed with this company, and he’s not even willing to fight their champions right now.”
The Angano People’s Liberation Front has not announced any opponent of Francis Nganuu yet.