'If it's up to me, Jon Jones is a good one' - Francis Ngannou says he's willing to fight 'Bones' ahead of other heavyweight contenders
Francis Ngannou has claimed that if he was given a choice to pick his next opponent in the UFC, then the new heavyweight champion would choose Jon Jones.
In an interview with ESPN's Ariel Helwani, Francis Ngannou claimed that he is ready to take out the number one pound-for-pound fighter after beating the greatest heavyweight of all time in Stipe Miocic.
Ngannou certainly understands the importance of a win over Jones and what it would mean for his career and his resume.
"Yeah, if it was up to me, yes. Jon Jones is a good one. Just take the best heavyweight of all time out then take the pound-for-pound guy out. You'll be great in the resume, it will look good."
Francis Ngannou further said that he thinks Jones is at a point in his career where he wants to take on a new challenge and wants a big payday, which makes sense to the former.
The Predator further billed Jones as "the greatest" and thinks that one certainly cannot deny the latter anything in this sport. Ngannou also stressed that Jones has been part of some of the best fights of all time and has a tremendous amount of experience.
"I don't know, I think he wanna take some challenge but I think he is at some point of his career he wants his big payday, makes sense. You can't argue nothing with that, he deserve it, he built it. He's the greatest, #1 pound-for-pound guy. Been there for so long. So you can't deny anything in this sport to change and he has been to war and he has this experience I think."
The new UFC heavyweight champion also believes that Jones will require something more exciting in his career. After having dominated the light heavyweight division for such a long time, Jones might approach a different goal, which is when he could cross paths with Ngannou.
"Yeah, at some point, he might need something more exciting, you know. Because maybe I think maybe fighting in the division that he has always won, maybe he has to try something or set up a different goal and that could cross a path with me."
Will Francis Ngannou face Jon Jones this year?
As things stand, UFC president Dana White doesn't seem interested in a fight between Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones. The UFC president has claimed he would rather have Derrick Lewis get a shot at the UFC heavyweight title.
It remains to be seen if the UFC and Jones could negotiate a potential deal and if the former UFC light heavyweight champion goes on to challenge Francis Ngannou for the heavyweight strap.