18 May 2023 , 14:33
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Francis Ngannou admits he regrets not fighting Jon Jones having signed with the PFL following his UFC exit.
Ngannou, 36, vacated his UFC heavyweight title and parted ways with the promotion in January after failing to agree a new contract. The knockout artist was linked to a highly-anticipated defence of his title against Jones but he turned down an $8million deal to face the UFC legend, much to the disappointment of fans.
Jones went on to win Ngannou's vacated belt by tapping out Ciryl Gane in just over two minutes at UFC 285 in March. Ngannou, who makes his PFL debut next year against a yet-to-be-revealed opponent, is still hoping that he will stand across Jones in the cage one day even though the two heavyweights are now competing in different promotions.
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"Oh yes, I will always have a regret of not fighting Jon Jones. Being in this sport and in this position, what you want to do is test yourself against someone like Jon Jones who is considered the greatest of all time in this sport. You can't argue that. Still to this day, if there is ever an opportunity to fight Jon Jones we will do it," Ngannou said on DC & RC.
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"I don't know how we will do it, maybe a cross-promotion? I don't know, but Jon Jones is somebody that anyone who is looking to make a legacy in this sport would like to fight. It goes both ways even for Jon Jones, this fight [against me] was a good fight to make a statement."
Francis Ngannou left the UFC for PFL (Zuffa LLC)
The heavyweight regrets not fighting UFC legend Jon Jones (Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)Jones has since criticised Ngannou for leaving the UFC by tweeting: "Calling yourself the baddest man on the planet from across the street, who does that? Lol. My man wins one Super Bowl, transferred to a top arena football league, and then claims to be better than Brady. That’s what I’m hearing right now."
Ngannou indirectly responded to Jones' tweet by telling him to "cross the street" and YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul, who serves as the head of fighter advocacy for PFL, has since suggested a cross-promotion fight between the two heavyweights. Paul also threw his name into the hat to face UFC legend Nate Diaz in the cage after the pair compete in their upcoming boxing match on August 15.