Francis Ngannou’s search for his next fighting home continues.
All options are currently on the table for combat sports’ biggest (literally) free agent, Ngannou. The former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champion departed the promotion earlier this year (Jan. 2023) with hopes to box in his next time out, but still intends on returning to mixed martial arts (MMA).
Also in the realm of possibility is bare-knuckle boxing for Bare-Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) … at least it was until “The Predator” got carried away with his asking price, according to BKFC President, David Feldman.
“Francis Ngannou, he’s somebody we’ve certainly reached out to,” Feldman said at the BKFC 41 pre-fight press conference today (Tues., April 4, 2023). “We’ve reached out to him, we’ve reached out to his team, and we just feel like he’s asking for unrealistic money, and we’re not willing to pay that kind of money for him.
“I do think he needs to make his mind up pretty soon,” he concluded. “As the days go on, his value is starting to drop a little bit.”
BKFC has been known as a rather lucrative combat sports option for several MMA-related names since its creation in 2018. Most recently, the promotion added the likes of former UFC champions, Luke Rockhold and Eddie Alvarez, to its roster. The pair is set to debut against the likes of fellow UFC veterans, Mike Perry and Chad Mendes, at BKFC 41 on April 29, 2023.
As for Ngannou, several predictions have been made about his fighting future. In MMA, Bellator, ONE Championship, and Professional Fighters League (PFL) have expressed interest and seem like the most logical landing spots. Ngannou, however, has teased that he has something in the works for the summer, hoping to make his boxing debut first.