Francis Ngannou had three keys demands when he was negotiating for a new UFC contract: health insurance for fighters, a fighter advocate at board meetings and a new sponsorship deal.
Ultimately, the UFC heavyweight champion ended up leaving the promotion without losing his title after negotiations failed to result in a deal that both sides could agree on, and he is testing free agency. Ngannou broke his silence on the situation on Tuesday night during an appearance on The MMA Hour, where he detailed exactly what he was looking for.
The fighter detailed how he spoke with UFC COO Hunter Campbell and matchmaker Mick Maynard in a phone call, which he felt was also being heard by promotional president Dana White. He was keen to organise a boxing match, which the UFC had no interest in pursuing, as well as looking for universal changes such as health insurance and sponsorships.
“They didn’t want anything to do with boxing,” Ngannou said of UFC chiefs. “They were like, if, and only if, and in good faith, and I’m like, I’m not betting on that. Let's get a three-fight deal. I can knock out a three-fight deal in one year if I'm not hurt and then I can go do my boxing, whatever I want.
"If, during this time, you guys find an interest in doing boxing together, then we do it. But I just wanted to do those three fights, deliver those three fights and then get free from our contract. Three fights would have been the maximum. Of course I still want to box."
As for his three demands, Ngannou believed the freedom of a looser contract to be more important than money, which would have seen him make millions and become the highest paid heavyweight in UFC history. He refused to disclose an exact amount, but admitted that a fight with Jon Jones in March would have seen him pocket in the region of $8million (£6.5m).
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"There was a lot of them," he responded when host Ariel Helwani asked what the sticking points were in the deal. "What I have learned is that you don't go to the negotiation table expecting to get everything that you want. But at least you want the other side to show a willingness to at least try.
"I asked for a lot of things, which doesn't mean I was expecting all of those things, but I expected at least one or two of those things. I asked for a right to sponsorship, which we've been ripped of, we can't have sponsorship. I asked for health insurance, which we don't have, and I asked for somebody in the board meetings, a fighter advocate.
"I couldn't have that stuff that I asked for, but I just wanted to know that some stuff that I do want would at least be in consideration. They said, 'no, we don't do business like that'. I said, 'yes, I can pay my health insurance', because at this point for me it's not a problem, but how about those guys that are at the bottom making $10,000 plus $10,000, or if they lose a fight $10,000? They can't really afford that."
