- Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones had a chance encounter at PFL 5
- Some fans could be heard booing “The Predator” as he made his entrance
Reigning UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones was in the right place and at the right time when he paid Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta, Georgia a visit for the PFL 5 event. While cageside, “Bones” got to finally come face to face with former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou.
The moment fans have been waiting for
Indeed, it was the moment MMA fans around the world have been waiting for. True to form, Jones and Ngannou delighted the fans in attendance by standing a few inches away from each other and having a little chat.
Contrary to what some may have expected, “Bones” and “The Predator” did not have a heated exchange. However, Jones could be heard telling Ngannou:
“You know, you don’t want no smoke!”
Check out the video below:
Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou meet face to face…no more Twitter pic.twitter.com/0iSeO8RLxy
— MMA Mania (@mmamania) June 17, 2023
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvEsgp_KAMY
Some fans hate Francis?
In another video now circulating online, Ngannou could be seen making a grand entrance as he walked into cageside. While majority of the crowd were thrilled to finally see “The Predator” in the flesh, a few seemingly drunken fans could be heard booing Ngannou.
Watch the clip below:
🚨The 𝑩𝑨𝑫𝑫𝑬𝑺𝑻 𝑴𝑨𝑵 𝑶𝑵 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑷𝑳𝑨𝑵𝑬𝑻 @francis_ngannou is in the building 🚨#PFLRegularSeason LIVE NOW
🇺🇸 ESPN+
🌎 https://t.co/jPNvomD5xg pic.twitter.com/LsSLXXMHxG— PFL (@PFLMMA) June 17, 2023
Ngannou and Jones go way back as the pair have been linked to a heavyweight showdown way before “The Predator” left the UFC for PFL. Certain complications in the negotiations seemed to have botched the highly-anticipated showdown between the two but Ngannou remains optimistic that he and Jones would still face each other in the future.
As it stands, Ngannou has made it clear that he will make his PFL debut early next year and he is laser-focused on boxing at the moment. On the other hand, Jones is very likely to defend his UFC heavyweight title against Stipe Miocic most probably in November. Jones said he will retire after beating Miocic but would pause his retirement for a fight against Ngannou.
