Explaining the reasons Francis Ngannou left UFC ahead of Tyson Fury fight

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Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou will make his professional boxing debut this weekend when he faces one of the greatest of all time in Tyson Fury. The highly anticipated fight is the main event of a stacked heavyweight boxing card in Saudi Arabia with Ngannou set to make the biggest payday of his career – which might be the biggest reason why he left the UFC in the first place.

Ngannou shocked the MMA world when he decided to walk away from the UFC in January 2022 as the heavyweight champion after his impressive victory over Ciryl Gane. 

The Cameroonian has not been in action since he left the UFC following months of negotiations that failed to come to terms on an extension – despite UFC president Dana White stating that he was offered the biggest contract that they have ever sent a heavyweight.

Instead, Ngannou joined PFL, part-owned by Jake Paul, when he signed a deal as an “exclusive global MMA strategic partnership” to fight in MMA with them while being allowed to explore his options in boxing.

The main reason that Ngannou did not sign with the UFC, he stated, was to have his freedom to be able to box as well as fight with the organisation – as Conor McGregor had when he faced Floyd Mayweather.

“It doesn’t matter how much [money] is in that contract, I am not free. I have no power. I hand all the power over to you guys [the UFC] and I don’t want that to happen,” Ngnanou had told Ariel Helwani.

“I really wished it could work out, I always saw myself in the UFC. But it’s a matter of principle. Money is a part of it but it’s not all about money.”

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Ngannou also claimed that he had requested the UFC to provide health insurance for all their fighters, but they rejected that deal – something they have previously been criticised for by the aforementioned Paul.

“I wanted them [the UFC] to put these things in consideration, they said no. I can pay my health insurance but some of the fighters can’t,” Ngannou added.

“This is very important, dignity and freedom. I need freedom and to control my destiny, not have people control it for me.”

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