- Francis Ngannou plans to face Deontay Wilder in his return to boxing
- “The Predator” described how UFC used the Jon Jones fight as “bait” during their negotiations
Francis Ngannou is eyeing to get booked against Deontay Wilder in another boxing showdown. The former heavyweight champ also took a shot at UFC over his botched fight with Jon Jones.
Ngannou wants to prove he hits harder than Deontay
Speaking to Sportsbook Review, “The Predator” provided an update on his next move. According to Ngannou, he plans to go back to boxing and take on Wilder.
Ngannou admitted that he wants to see how he would fare against the former WBC heavyweight champion. Moreover, he believes he could hit harder than “The Bronze Bomber.”
“I will do boxing next,” Ngannou (0-2) told Sportsbook Review. “I want to. I’m not done with boxing. It’s not that MMA is easy, it’s the sport that I understand better and I have more experience in, but I say go for boxing. Maybe not in his past two fights, but Deontay Wilder is known as a guy that knocks everybody out or tries to knock you out. I’m going against that guy, and I myself can knock someone out. Deep inside me there is a little bit of ego, like I know I hit harder.”
UFC wanted to trap Ngannou using Jones
It has been two years since Ngannou parted ways with the UFC but he still blames the promotion for his exit. As he looked back at his final days with the UFC, “The Predator” said the company used the Jones fight as “bait” to make him agree to what they wanted him to do. However, he chose to follow what he believed was best for him.
As it stands, Ngannou still believes a showdown between him and “Bones” could still happen. However, he is not as interested in it as he used to be.
“I think it’s something that could potentially happen,” Ngannou said of potentially fighting Jones. “If you can get past Dana White, it could happen. That’s a massive obstacle.”
“But personally, I don’t care,” he pointed out. “I’m doing well. I’m doing my stuff at my pace. I don’t care. That won’t change my sleep for me. It would be okay. I have tried to fight Jon Jones for four years, since I fought Jairzinho Rozenstruik back in 2020. I’ve been trying to fight Jon Jones, and then they were holding it out like a trap until the moment that I was about to leave. And then they said, ‘Okay, here’s the Jon Jones fight.’ But it was bait. I felt they were very tricky.”
Turki Alalshikh previously hinted at making the Ngannou vs. Jones fight happen whether UFC president Dana White likes it or not. As for “The Predator,” it seems like he is looking to bounce back in boxing after suffering a tough KO loss to Anthony Joshua.
