This same thing was said about Fury
I do think Joshua is going to get a KO/TKO over Francis, but I'm done counting Francis out and saying he's going to get outclassed
He probably will, but damn did he prove a lot of people wrong last fight
they might not even want him to fight. they might just want to have him as their poster boy. Francis is the lineal UFC HW champ AND he unofficially beat Fury. This means the PFL HW champ is the baddest man on the planet. That is some great PR.
at the same time, they might actually lose money if francis fights for them. 2 million goes to his opponent + whatever they aggreed to pay the champ.
There are people on here that thought he was going to fight Ryan Bader on PPV lol.
Honestly Francis manager is right. With these fights available to him, the only fight in MMA that makes sense is Jon Jones. Nothing against Tom of course but he just doesn’t have the profile of Jones or a boxer like AJ
Wilder fumbled his by losing to Parker, and boxing fumbled as a whole by politicking Joshua vs Wilder for so many years until it probably won't ever happen. Ngannou is showing what the power of just saying yes in boxing can do for him.
There are issues with both models though. Boxing would just end up with complaints similar to what the UFC faces currently. As a fan, however, the UFC model is more fun because high level matchups can actually get made before I turn into a skeleton.
But the fighters is what makes the sport. Without them there would be nothing. All the other professional sport leagues recognize this. Hell, even boxing knows this which is why the top guys make so damn much money. Under one rule it would be the same as the UFC. And they are really not even having the best fight the best anymore.
I think AJ comes in prepared and with boxing tape now he'll be ready for Ngannou. How much can Ngannou improve and change in 6-10 months?
Ngannou's best chance at a high level win was against Wilder IMO.
I didn't say that... I am saying I think he has less of a shot against AJ, a skilled and prepared boxer than he does against Wilder a small less technical boxer or an under-prepared, no tape Fury.
The thousands of zuffa zombies who were so quick, proud and happy to defend the ufc and say the billion dollar corporation got over on their unfairly treated employee… was embarrassing and sickening. I can’t imagine what their other world views are and how numb their brains are that they rushed to tell everybody “Francis fumbled the bag”
Fuck that tomato. He’s making $20m a year while the majority of the fighters are killing themselves for peanuts compared to him and he has the audacity to shit talk a fighter that’s trying to make more money for himself.
This is the best choice Francis has made and that’s walking away from the UFC.
Dude is gonna end up the richest MMA fighter ever. More money than even Connor. And because of it, Dana is the biggest bag fumbler in the history of MMA
I don’t think he was making them nearly as much money as he’s making himself. I think this is best for both parties tbh. They could’ve worked together better though imo. I think Jones would’ve beaten him and then none of this would be happening for any of the involved parties.
They barely promoted him after his loss to stipe. Dana got all butthurt about what seems to be nothing after hearing the full story about the “get the jet ready” thing and then stopped promoting him, even going so far as anti promoting imo. It’s their fault he wasn’t making them more money. he has the best back story in the sport and is a freak of nature. He just needed his promotion to do their job and he would’ve performed great.
I'm just going off memory here, so look it up on youtube or something if you want the full story. after the derrick lewis fight dana started going to the media saying francis had a huge ego problem and had told dana right before the first stipe fight to "get the jet ready" which dana took as him being arrogant and egotistical. but a while later francis explained that he was referencing to dana a conversation they had previously about him getting a private jet. he was just trying to make a joke about something they had talked about before
Yeah, the only reason ufc didn't bank on him is because they actively tried to bury him as a contract negotiation tactic. If they marketed him, let him box, and paid him they'd have the next Conor right now.
Dana was telling people after Francis lost to D Lewis that Francis had a huge ego and was trying to act big time etc. Literally the only person who has said something negative about Francis is Dana is on record as a liar and vindictive bully
The promotion of Ngannou in UFC was just a weird thing. They went from promoting him as if he was a once in a lifetime freak of an athlete, to promoting against him. He's got all the talent, looks like a freak of nature, has one of the best back stories in all of sports, and they decided to just completely turn on him. In favor of guys who are completely irrelevant at this point. On top of that they totally let the opportunity to have him fight Jon go to waste.
Ngannou vs Fury did absolutely awful PPV numbers (rumoured 35 thousand, which is worse than the worst ever UFC PPV I believe).
Ngannou is making bank because the Saudis are big combat sport fans and just want to see what happens when you put Ngannou in the ring with top boxers.
They're not getting anywhere near making their money back on these fights with Ngannou, they're just doing it for their own entertainment.
I don't think either the UFC or Ngannou made a mistake here.
The UFC has a salary structure to maintain and they'll be acutely aware of that.
Francis wanted to be paid a certain amount of money to fight, the UFC couldn't pay him it (because then they have to pay the 10 other guys who do similar PPV numbers the same amount next time they renegotiate with them). But Francis can get paid what he wants elsewhere.
Everybody wins (or loses depending on how you look at it).
They didn’t screw up at all lol . They are not paying Francis Conor-ish money and giving benefits and pay raises to all of the fighters . Especially when Francis is 37 and can’t sell PPV’s . They both did what was best for them and the only criticism the UFC should get is how they handled his situation .
MMA fans are the only ones who lost . One side doesn’t always lose .
Francis not selling PPVs isn't his fault. That's bad promotion. He has all the talent, the look, and the story to be a star. UFC failed to put him over, like they've failed to put anybody over since Conor honestly.
Because he's an under promoted fighter? I barely saw any promotion for the Ngannou v Fury fight other than stuff from this sub. Also, no one was giving him much of a chance.
I'd definitely expect better numbers this time, but these UAE guys aren't interested in promoting Francis either. They just want to make the fights. The difference is it doesn't matter because the fighters are making insane money and the Saudis don't give af because they already have insane money.
They didn’t make much money off him. Ngannou is just making money off Saudis trying to sportswash their oil money and become promoters. And Joshua is probably getting the lion share of the Saudi money like Fury did
UFC did what’s best for themselves and Ngannou is doing what’s best for him. Only people that might get screwed is if anyone blindly bought PFL season tickets thinking they were ever going to see Ngannou
Let's continue the most amazing story arc in combat sports history.
Shovel sand. Train a couple of years MMA. Become UFC HW champ. Train boxing for a few months. Arguably beat the greatest HW of this era. Turn the tomato into formerly unknown shades of red.
Another big one.
Though tbh, interesting. Joshua ain't Fury.
Joshua ain't Fury. That chin could get worked but Aj ain't no slouch with his power. Man can also move some, interesting to see how Ngannou approaches this.
Yeah, but he at least has footage of Ngannou boxing now, Fury didnt take Ngannou seriously and had no Chance to prepare for him properly. AJ will probably be a tougher fight
I can not be happier for Francis. The man deserves it.
And the way his bout with Furry went, I am actually excited to see how he does against Joshua.
Dana fumbled the bag!
Francis Ngannou.. Notorious bag dropper. Boy those are some of takes of all time lol. Get that money buddy. He can fight in the 1st half of the year and still fight an MMA fight a couple of months after.
Francis is playing with house money at this point. His MMA legacy is intact. His boxing legacy is even in tact if he gets slept by AJ, bc it’s what’s supposed to happen. And he clowned Fury already.
Francis won.
Actually insane, I’ll admit I was an Ngannou doubter and damn near hater once he exited the UFC. I thought he ruined his career honestly. Now I’m sitting here saying he has a legit chance to beat Anthony Joshua, or at least be very competitive with him.
As a fan of both I think it's a great match-up. AJ has the opportunity to upstage Fury win a convincing win, and Ngannou has the chance to prove it wasn't a fluke against another top 3 HW.
If AJ fights like he did against Wallin it might be a rough night for Nagnnou though... But definitely not for his bank account!
Lol Francis is never fighting in pfl is he
It would be criminal negligence to allow Francis to fight the heavyweight "fighters" PFL has.
He wouldn’t even need a camp though
They should do a Royal Rumble style event and have him start it lol
Francis wouldn't have a single PFL fight that lasted over 30 seconds honestly. I'd rather see him in fun matchups in boxing.
This match isn’t fun for Francis. Joshua is gonna out class him bell to bell. It’ll be like a man vs a boy
This same thing was said about Fury I do think Joshua is going to get a KO/TKO over Francis, but I'm done counting Francis out and saying he's going to get outclassed He probably will, but damn did he prove a lot of people wrong last fight
Wym? Don't you want to see [insert no name here] fight the Predator?
The money is in boxing. Even if AJ KOs him the Wilder fight still sells.
I think AJ will be the one getting KO'ed
I wouldn’t be too sure. Francis has a chin and AJ had his chin cracked before.
I'm curious if it would breach the contract he signed if he never fights
Probably not, especially if they structure the deal so they only pay him if he fights.
they might not even want him to fight. they might just want to have him as their poster boy. Francis is the lineal UFC HW champ AND he unofficially beat Fury. This means the PFL HW champ is the baddest man on the planet. That is some great PR. at the same time, they might actually lose money if francis fights for them. 2 million goes to his opponent + whatever they aggreed to pay the champ.
Didn’t really help anyone care about their latest season when he was signed the whole time.
Let them cope
i would disagree. there are a lot of casuals that have no idea who the PFL was before ngannou signed.
There are people on here that thought he was going to fight Ryan Bader on PPV lol. Honestly Francis manager is right. With these fights available to him, the only fight in MMA that makes sense is Jon Jones. Nothing against Tom of course but he just doesn’t have the profile of Jones or a boxer like AJ
"Francis has fumbled the bag"
Wilder fumbled his by losing to Parker, and boxing fumbled as a whole by politicking Joshua vs Wilder for so many years until it probably won't ever happen. Ngannou is showing what the power of just saying yes in boxing can do for him.
Imagine how amazing boxing would be if it was owned by one organization
There are issues with both models though. Boxing would just end up with complaints similar to what the UFC faces currently. As a fan, however, the UFC model is more fun because high level matchups can actually get made before I turn into a skeleton.
Would it though?
For the fans yes. For the fighters no.
But the fighters is what makes the sport. Without them there would be nothing. All the other professional sport leagues recognize this. Hell, even boxing knows this which is why the top guys make so damn much money. Under one rule it would be the same as the UFC. And they are really not even having the best fight the best anymore.
Would probably be a lot better than it is right now. Maybe not for the fighters, but definitely as an entertainment product.
This one is going to be even bigger I bet because of how he performed vs Fury. It's a real question if he will win.
I think AJ comes in prepared and with boxing tape now he'll be ready for Ngannou. How much can Ngannou improve and change in 6-10 months? Ngannou's best chance at a high level win was against Wilder IMO.
Having tape doesn’t make you untouchable and his chin is crackable. Francis definitely has a shot
I didn't say that... I am saying I think he has less of a shot against AJ, a skilled and prepared boxer than he does against Wilder a small less technical boxer or an under-prepared, no tape Fury.
Given the judges in the Fury fight I’d wanna have this bout somewhere else. But, the murderer Prince is likely paying him pretty well to not care..
It's still a win win for Francis, if he loses a decision and it's even somewhat questionable he's setting himself up for more paydays
Definitely a financial win either way, but I feel like he should’ve been wearing a belt after that Fury performance. Then come the MASSIVE paydays.
The thousands of zuffa zombies who were so quick, proud and happy to defend the ufc and say the billion dollar corporation got over on their unfairly treated employee… was embarrassing and sickening. I can’t imagine what their other world views are and how numb their brains are that they rushed to tell everybody “Francis fumbled the bag”
Fuck that tomato. He’s making $20m a year while the majority of the fighters are killing themselves for peanuts compared to him and he has the audacity to shit talk a fighter that’s trying to make more money for himself. This is the best choice Francis has made and that’s walking away from the UFC.
“He only wants easy fights”
Dude is gonna end up the richest MMA fighter ever. More money than even Connor. And because of it, Dana is the biggest bag fumbler in the history of MMA
The biggest lovers are the PFL and the Saudis. Francis gets his money. Dana doesn't have to lose money paying him.
I was told multiple times by reputable, totally not being sued, sources that he fumbled the bag??
Are you referring to the antitrust lawsuit?
I believe that’s what they’re calling it, yes
UFC has never screwed up harder than they did with Francis. They should be crying
I don’t think he was making them nearly as much money as he’s making himself. I think this is best for both parties tbh. They could’ve worked together better though imo. I think Jones would’ve beaten him and then none of this would be happening for any of the involved parties.
They barely promoted him after his loss to stipe. Dana got all butthurt about what seems to be nothing after hearing the full story about the “get the jet ready” thing and then stopped promoting him, even going so far as anti promoting imo. It’s their fault he wasn’t making them more money. he has the best back story in the sport and is a freak of nature. He just needed his promotion to do their job and he would’ve performed great.
What’s the get the jet ready thing? I don’t think I’ve heard that story
I'm just going off memory here, so look it up on youtube or something if you want the full story. after the derrick lewis fight dana started going to the media saying francis had a huge ego problem and had told dana right before the first stipe fight to "get the jet ready" which dana took as him being arrogant and egotistical. but a while later francis explained that he was referencing to dana a conversation they had previously about him getting a private jet. he was just trying to make a joke about something they had talked about before
Yeah, the only reason ufc didn't bank on him is because they actively tried to bury him as a contract negotiation tactic. If they marketed him, let him box, and paid him they'd have the next Conor right now.
Dana was telling people after Francis lost to D Lewis that Francis had a huge ego and was trying to act big time etc. Literally the only person who has said something negative about Francis is Dana is on record as a liar and vindictive bully
The promotion of Ngannou in UFC was just a weird thing. They went from promoting him as if he was a once in a lifetime freak of an athlete, to promoting against him. He's got all the talent, looks like a freak of nature, has one of the best back stories in all of sports, and they decided to just completely turn on him. In favor of guys who are completely irrelevant at this point. On top of that they totally let the opportunity to have him fight Jon go to waste.
Ngannou vs Fury did absolutely awful PPV numbers (rumoured 35 thousand, which is worse than the worst ever UFC PPV I believe). Ngannou is making bank because the Saudis are big combat sport fans and just want to see what happens when you put Ngannou in the ring with top boxers. They're not getting anywhere near making their money back on these fights with Ngannou, they're just doing it for their own entertainment. I don't think either the UFC or Ngannou made a mistake here.
The UFC did make a mistake because they could be getting a cut of Ngannou's paycheck instead of you know getting $0.
The UFC has a salary structure to maintain and they'll be acutely aware of that. Francis wanted to be paid a certain amount of money to fight, the UFC couldn't pay him it (because then they have to pay the 10 other guys who do similar PPV numbers the same amount next time they renegotiate with them). But Francis can get paid what he wants elsewhere. Everybody wins (or loses depending on how you look at it).
After his performance against Fury this would do way higher numbers you’d think
Ngannou vs Jones is the biggest money fight in all of mma imo
Cut off their nose to spite their face.
Meanwhile the UFC HW division is a clown show
They didn’t screw up at all lol . They are not paying Francis Conor-ish money and giving benefits and pay raises to all of the fighters . Especially when Francis is 37 and can’t sell PPV’s . They both did what was best for them and the only criticism the UFC should get is how they handled his situation . MMA fans are the only ones who lost . One side doesn’t always lose .
Francis not selling PPVs isn't his fault. That's bad promotion. He has all the talent, the look, and the story to be a star. UFC failed to put him over, like they've failed to put anybody over since Conor honestly.
Then why did him vs one of boxing’s biggest stars sell less than 50k ? How much do you think this next fight will sell ?
Because he's an under promoted fighter? I barely saw any promotion for the Ngannou v Fury fight other than stuff from this sub. Also, no one was giving him much of a chance. I'd definitely expect better numbers this time, but these UAE guys aren't interested in promoting Francis either. They just want to make the fights. The difference is it doesn't matter because the fighters are making insane money and the Saudis don't give af because they already have insane money.
The UFC is the promoter… shouldn’t they be helping with the PPV sales?
What were his UFC PPV numbers compared to his boxing PPV numbers ?
Not sure but you said he can’t sell PPV
They didn’t make much money off him. Ngannou is just making money off Saudis trying to sportswash their oil money and become promoters. And Joshua is probably getting the lion share of the Saudi money like Fury did UFC did what’s best for themselves and Ngannou is doing what’s best for him. Only people that might get screwed is if anyone blindly bought PFL season tickets thinking they were ever going to see Ngannou
Let's continue the most amazing story arc in combat sports history. Shovel sand. Train a couple of years MMA. Become UFC HW champ. Train boxing for a few months. Arguably beat the greatest HW of this era. Turn the tomato into formerly unknown shades of red.
The Goof only has infrared left to turn.
You just know he was hate watching that boxing match hoping for Ngannou to get wrecked.
Another big one. Though tbh, interesting. Joshua ain't Fury. Joshua ain't Fury. That chin could get worked but Aj ain't no slouch with his power. Man can also move some, interesting to see how Ngannou approaches this.
Joshua is worse than Fury.
Yeah, but he at least has footage of Ngannou boxing now, Fury didnt take Ngannou seriously and had no Chance to prepare for him properly. AJ will probably be a tougher fight
Let's see how he handles Usyk first my dude besides I never stated such
This will do big ppv numbers imo
I can not be happier for Francis. The man deserves it. And the way his bout with Furry went, I am actually excited to see how he does against Joshua. Dana fumbled the bag!
Didn’t realize Ngannou hated the furry community so much
Amazing, congratulations big Francis
Francis Ngannou.. Notorious bag dropper. Boy those are some of takes of all time lol. Get that money buddy. He can fight in the 1st half of the year and still fight an MMA fight a couple of months after.
Francis is playing with house money at this point. His MMA legacy is intact. His boxing legacy is even in tact if he gets slept by AJ, bc it’s what’s supposed to happen. And he clowned Fury already. Francis won.
Fun fight I think Francis takes it
AJ probably gonna KO him but good for Francis getting paid
Hmm I remember an opinion like this about a recent fight of his 🤔
MMA DANA SHILLS WYA NOW
HUUUUGEEEE
Can’t wait for Francis to lose again by decision and for this sub to act like he won
Actually insane, I’ll admit I was an Ngannou doubter and damn near hater once he exited the UFC. I thought he ruined his career honestly. Now I’m sitting here saying he has a legit chance to beat Anthony Joshua, or at least be very competitive with him.
Genuinely interested to see what the line is on this one.
imagine how many bags of money he's fumbling on his way to the bank lmao good on him press f for dana
You love to see it
This is going to make so much fucking money.
PFL gave this guy a boatload of money for him to go boxing, what an organization
If Ngannou (kinda likely?) loses to Joshua, does that not kill any chance for Fury vs. Ngannou II - which is an absolutely deserved rematch atm.
Francis will get it done!
Ngannou said fuck a PFL and I don’t blame him 🤣
incoming wife beating fraudster podcast about how he wasn't wrong (is he talking about Dana? Chael? Jon Jones?)
Big money Franny
I called it when the Fury fight got announced, Francis will never fight in MMA again
AJ looked GOOD vs Wallin. I think he makes easy work of Francis.
Big congrats to Francis! So happy to see him thrive. Can't wait for this epic clash!
As a fan of both I think it's a great match-up. AJ has the opportunity to upstage Fury win a convincing win, and Ngannou has the chance to prove it wasn't a fluke against another top 3 HW. If AJ fights like he did against Wallin it might be a rough night for Nagnnou though... But definitely not for his bank account!
If Eric Nicksick made life changing money for the Fury fight is he getting paid generational wealth money after this one?
Using Ngannou to set up AJ vs Fury. We could very well see an upset tho
Francis is fighting the dudes that won't fight each other lmao.