Francis Ngannou recalls negotiations with the UFC and reveals: 'Jon Jones was never in the works'

F. Ngannou is a former UFC heavyweight champion (Photo: Instagram/UFC)

Even years after leaving the Ultimate while still the world heavyweight champion (up to 120,2 kg) and moving to the PFL, Francis Ngannou still has interesting information about his former bosses. In an interview with 'ESPN' this Thursday (22), the Predator revealed that, unlike anything that was expected, there was never actually a proposal for a meeting with Jon Jones in the most famous octagon in the world.

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According to the Cameroonian, there was never actually a possibility of facing Jon Jones . From his point of view, Bones' name was only mentioned as a strategy by White and the matchmakers to try and convince him to stay with the organization.

“ Jon Jones was never in the works. The only time he seemed like a possibility was when he was used as bait to lure me in. It’s not a problem with the contract – I’m a businessman, so I understand how contracts work. Bring me the contract, I’ll look at it and sign it. It just needs to be right and fair,” he said.

Francis Ngannou says Jon Jones was never on the table and was only used as bait to lure him

“ Jon Jones was never on the table. The only time he seemed like a possibility was when he was used as bait to lure me.

It's not a problem with the contract – I'm a businessman, so I… pic.twitter.com/veVlXb1X8d

— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) April 22, 2026

Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou had a rivalry.

Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou face off during a PFL event (Photo: Reproduction/Twitter)

Two extremely popular and successful names, a confrontation between Jones and Ngannou was speculated by fans and media for many years. While the Predator reigned in the heavyweight division (up to 120,2 kg), Bones left the lower division after a long period of dominance and tried to adapt his body to compete at a high level in the UFC's heavier weight class. Unfortunately, the Cameroonian chose to leave the company and migrate to the PFL.

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