"We're at the mercy of the promotion" - Francis Ngannou's coach disapproves of the UFC attempting to book an interim heavyweight fight
Francis Ngannou's coach Eric Nicksick isn't in favor of another interim championship bout in the heavyweight division.
With Ngannou still out, an interim title bout could be in play between any combination of Jon Jones, Stipe Miocic, and Ciryl Gane. However, Nicksick believes another placeholder belt isn't warranted, adding that he wasn't in favor of the interim title bout between Gane and Derrick Lewis in the first place. Nicksick told MMA Junkie:
"Well, you know, we're at the mercy of the promotion. I didn't feel like the last fight was justified for an interim [title] – the [Ciryl] Gane and Derrick Lewis fight. I thought that fight was a number-one contender fight, especially when you talk about what Francis had to wait before he had to fight Jairzinho [Rozenstruik]."
The way Nicksick sees it, the best move would be for the UFC to wait until the reigning champion is fully recovered to make way for the long-awaited and much ballyhooed superfight between Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones. Nicksick continued:
"If [Francis Ngannou] wasn't ready for December, and they wanna get another heavyweight fight in before that, then Gane and Stipe [Miocic] or Gane and Jon Jones make a lot of sense if Francis isn't ready to go," he added. "But if they have something going on in February and March when we can plug back in and do something when we can get Francis and Jon Jones, I say, why not wait until February?"
Check out Eric Nicksick's interview below:
Francis Ngannou still wants to pursue pro boxing
Francis Ngannou revealed that the most realistic timetable for his return is early next year.
'The Predator' is currently nursing a knee injury he suffered in the lead-up to his unification bout against Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 in January. He has since been on the sidelines as his UFC future hangs in the balance.
Watch the clip below:
Earlier this year, Ngannou teased a matchup between himself and heavyweight boxing world champion Tyson Fury. The Cameroonian superstar indicated that he's still interested in pursuing pro boxing regardless of whether or not Fury is involved. The UFC heavyweight champion told ESPN MMA:
"My career doesn't depend on Tyson Fury or anyone else. My desire of boxing doesn't depend on Tyson Fury. Whether he's retired or not, I'm still gonna do that. I still want a boxing match in my career, a few boxing matches. And that's something I'm going to engage in conversations [about] when it comes the moment."