Francis Ngannou in action against Stipe Miocic during a heavyweight championship mixed martial arts ... [+]
Who knows when the Francis Ngannou lottery will end?
But, if “The Predator” lands in the Professional Fighters League, it would boost the PFL’s already soaring momentum. The PFL rocked the industry earlier this month when it announced Jake Paul has signed with the fight league to start his MMA career. A followup Ngannou signing would be rocket fuel.
In a compelling interview from MMA Junkie, PFL commentator (and former UFC fighter) Kenny Florian discussed the impact on the sport if the PFL were to sign Ngannou, the industry’s No. 1 free agent who recently split with the UFC after contract negotiations collapsed.
“I think signing Francis Ngannou would be massive, not only for the PFL, but for the sport,” Florian said. “It’s going to get fighters to scratch their heads and go, ‘Hmm, maybe I could go over there.’ I think it would allow the PFL to get a ton of respect and eventually get even more great fighters.”
And if Ngannou heads to the season-based PFL, don’t expect the native Cameroonian to cruise to the heavyweight title and the $1 million prize, Florian said.
“I think a lot of our heavyweights, whether we’re talking about Ante Delija, Bruno Cappelozza – we have a ton of talent in the PFL in the heavyweight division, and I think there’s a lot of intriguing matchups and potential for them against Francis Ngannou,” Florian said. Here’s the whole interview:
Former UFC heavyweight champion Ngannou (17-3) told "The MMA Hour" this month the UFC talks failed not because of money. He said he requested to have his own sponsors, health insurance and a fighter advocate at UFC board meetings. Ngannou later clarified that he asked for insurance for all UFC fighters. The UFC, according to Ngannou, denied all three requests.
"I felt like I was slapped in the face with money," Ngannou said. "Like, 'Take the money and shut up.' That didn't work for me.”
Meanwhile, Ngannou is also dreaming of a cross-over boxing match, and a fight with heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury looms as a possibility because of the money the match would haul in — though it’s just verbal sparring at the moment.
“Francis Ngannou, I know you’re out of contract with the UFC,” Fury recently said. “You want to earn some big boy money? Come see ‘The Gypsy King’ and let’s do a big, big fight for the baddest MF on the planet.”
So whether Ngannou heads to the PFL SmartCage or the boxing ring — or somewhere else — it will rock the combat-sports industry when he announces his decision.
