BREAKING: UFC to strip Francis Ngannou and book Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane for vacant heavyweight title
According to multiple sources, Francis Ngannou's protracted contract dispute with the UFC has fallen apart.
MMA reporter Ariel Helwani has all the more confirmed that Ngannou will be stripped of his UFC heavyweight title and the organization already has a plan in place for the future of the division.
Ngannou has been embroiled in a contract dispute with the UFC since defending his title against Ciryl Gane at UFC 270. 'The Predator' claims that the UFC has hampered his progress and has demanded terms that would allow him to fight in boxing while still under contract with the UFC.
Francis Ngannou wants new UFC deal with boxing options, ‘will not fight for $500,000, $600,000 any more’ mmafighting.com/2022/1/13/2288… https://t.co/8Ics8l1ZAZ
Recent leaks from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas indicate that the UFC has decided to move on from Francis Ngannou and is arranging a bout between two-time light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and Ciryl Gane. Gane, the former interim heavyweight champion of the UFC, also challenged Jones to a bout at UFC 285.
For what it's worth, two different photos of this UFC 285 billboard are circulating.
Jones vs. Gane for the heavyweight championship at UFC 285 would be incredible. https://t.co/3aieyynDdk
Ariel Helwani addressed all the speculations and issued an update, indicating that Francis Ngannou will be stripped of his UFC title, with Jones and Gane the frontrunners to fight for the vacant belt:
"Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane, is this real? Yes, this is a real thing....Choice No.1 was Jon Jones on December 10th...but they wanted to wait a little longer to see if they can get the Francis deal done and see if Francis would be healthy to do it on March 4th [UFC 285]. The deal with Francis is not 100% done, he's not 100% [fit] yet so they're going to it seems move on from that."
Helwani added:
"In comes the Frenchman, Ciryl Gane, who's been in Las Vegas all week. It's a very real thing [fight with Jones]....not quite a 100%, but could be announced as early as tonight."
Catch Helwani's comments below:
Jon Jones x Ciryl Gane? For the belt?
Here’s everything I know as of right this moment. https://t.co/SMp3VgYJsW
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It all began with one of Francis Ngannou's family members being spotted in a PFL t-shirt
Francis Ngannou was recently seen spending some quality time with his family in Cameroon. Following knee surgery after his last title defense against Ciryl Gane at UFC 270, the UFC heavyweight champion is on the road to recovery.
'The Predator' recently shared photos from his New Year's Eve celebrations, which he spent with his family. Ngannou accompanied the post with the caption:
"Starting the best year ever!!! Happy NEW YEAR to y'all."
MMA fans and Twitter lurkers quickly noticed that one of Francis Ngannou's family members was wearing a Professional Fighters League (PFL) t-shirt. This gave rise to rumors that Ngannou is well on his way out of the UFC and could sign with the PFL. Fans also started speculating on a fantasy fight between the Cameroonian and Jake Paul, who also recently signed an MMA contract with the promotion.