Chael Sonnen explains why Bellator met with Francis Ngannou but didn't offer him a deal
Chael Sonnen recently revealed that Bellator met with Francis Ngannou but chose not to offer him a deal.
During an interview with former TUF runner-up Brendan Schaub, Sonnen explained Bellator's reasoning for not offering Ngannou a contract. He noted that Mike Kogan represented the promotion for the meeting and mentioned that they decided not to continue their pursuit after hearing how much the former UFC heavyweight champion was seeking.
He said:
"He [Mike Kogan] just said, 'Francis, for the numbers that you're talking, you're going to need a pay-per-view model...I'm not gonna waste your time...We're not gonna give you an offer.' And Bellator never did put an offer forward for Francis. Once they heard him, they just realized that this isn't gonna work." [3:24 - 3:41]
'The American Gangster' brought up that Kogan spoke highly of 'The Predator' as a person. Sonnen mentioned that another reason why Bellator didn't offer a deal is because it will be another year before the former heavyweight champion competes in MMA, saying:
"Bellator would want to take Francis but they would want him more so that the UFC couldn't have him...If you find out that he's gonna sit for another year and he's not gonna go out there, you now aren't paying for the second thing a guy will pay for which is to stop somebody else's product." [5:04 - 5:34]
It appears as though Bellator were interested in signing Ngnanou if they knew he was intending on competing in an MMA bout first before pursuing a boxing bout:
Chael Sonnen compliments Mackenzie Dern and Angela Hill
Chael Sonnen recently shared his thoughts about the main event strawweight bout between Mackenzie Dern and Angela Hill at UFC Vegas 73.
The former UFC title challenger uploaded a video to his YouTube channel, where he provided a recap of what transpired. He mentioned that both women deserved a lot of credit, especially Dern for being so transparent during her pre-fight interviews, saying:
"[Mackenzie Dern] talked about how stressful her life has been, talked about a divorce, that's heavy stuff...I mean, there's a lot on it. To go out there, to make weight, to be able to perform, to show up, let alone get your hand raised, those girls and I do mean both of them, deserve a lot of credit." [7:16 - 7:41]