Francis Ngannou isn’t particularly concerned with what UFC CEO Dana White thinks of his successful pro-boxing debut in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
After months of anticipation, ‘The Predator’ finally made his long-awaited return to combat sports, strapping on the eight-ounce gloves for a showdown with reigning WBC heavyweight world champion Tyson Fury. Emanating from Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, it was a star-studded event featuring some of the biggest names in sports and entertainment, including ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson, Conor McGregor, Kanye West, Eminem, Vince McMahon, and WWE legend The Undertaker.
Through 10 entertaining rounds of action, Ngannou shocked fight fans around the world with his skills in the sweet science, not only holding his own against Fury but even knocking down ‘The Gypsy King’ in the third round with a well-timed counter left.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to sway the scorecards in his favor. Ngannou lost the bout via a somewhat controversial split decision with only one point separating him from victory and defeat.
Francis Ngannou Doesn’t Care what Dana White or any of his haters think
On Monday, Ngannou joined Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour to discuss the weekend’s festivities and how he’s feeling after his otherwise impressive performance against once the greatest boxers in the sport today. Inevitably, their conversation turned to Ngannou’s former boss, Dana White, who had routinely doubted his ability to bag a big-money boxing match after their not-so-ammicable split earlier this year.
Asked for his thoughts on how the UFC CEO may be feeling after seeing his performance on Saturday night, Ngannou offered a rather blunt response.
“Who cares? Dana White feels like how Dana White feels,” Ngannou said. “I feel like I feel. Personally, I feel great. I think you’d have to send him an invite so you can ask him. I would like to know.”
Asked for his take on other fighters, such as current UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones, who has thrown stones his way following his exit from the promotion, ‘The Predator’ suggested that many of them are puppets just trying to curry favor with the boss, something he’s much too proud to do.
“Dana has power over a lot of fighters. A lot of them are just there to please the boss,” Ngannou added. “A lot of them, they don’t have their own personality. They don’t have their own identity. They just want to fit into something and you can’t blame them. It costs a lot and it takes a lot to stand up and say what you think and some people just don’t have it. Some people just make themselves a puppet. It’s okay, but I can’t be anybody’s puppet. I’m too big for that. I’m too proud for that.”
With his boxing debut in the books, fans will be waiting with bated breath to see what ‘The Predator’ does next.