Will Ngannou Return To The UFC?

Francis Ngannou’s coach, Eric Nicksick, has not ruled out a return to the UFC for The Predator. 

Ngannou left the UFC in 2023 after contract talks broke down. Reports indicate that Ngannou turned down an $8 million contract after worries that his right as an independent contractor would have been harmed. The departure also meant fans never got to see the Jon Jones fight. Dana White made it clear that he would never work with Ngannou again. White also shut down any chances that he would do a co-promotion with the PFL to make the Jones fight. 

"We won’t be. We’ll never be in business together. You can tell. We don’t like each other. This goes back to before the first Stipe fight. He pulled some shit before the first Stipe fight, and I said I’m done with this guy and then Stipe beat the shit out of him. Great night. We never had a relationship after that. He didn’t want that [Jones] fight. He could have stayed and took that fight. He didn’t want that fight. Tom Aspinall deserves that fight," White said 

Will It Happen?

Since then, Ngannou has had two boxing fights and one PFL bout. He lost a split decision to Tyson Fury in a boxing fight where some believed he was robbed. His follow-up fight against Anthony Joshua was less successful, as he was knocked out in the second round. Ngannou would bounce back with a first-round knockout win against Renan Ferreira in MMA. Ngannou has now become the PFL Heavyweight Champion, while his next boxing fight is unclear. That could pave the way for a return to the UFC, but it would take a lot for that to happen. 

"Enough time has passed, I would love to see them mend these fences and get back to competing in the UFC. I think it’s more about business than it is about ego, at least it is from Francis’ side. Now where does his motivations come from? It’s not about money, it’s about competition. And the best competition is in the UFC," Nicksick said 

Find all the latest boxing news and MMA breaking updates on boxingnews.com.