Francis Ngannou is about to receives a commission.
Earlier this 12 months, Ngannou signed a lucrative partnership with the PFL with plans to debut in 2024 after making his skilled boxing debut. Final week, that boxing debut was lastly introduced: Ngannou faces lineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury on Oct. 28 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Whereas there are nonetheless some particulars to be ironed out, one factor is for sure — Ngannou is about to earn more money in a single struggle than he made his whole UFC profession.
“What I’ll inform you is that, in comparison with what I used to be making for my UFC struggle, it’s day and evening,” Ngannou stated Monday on The MMA Hour. “It’s life altering. And it will be the identical factor if I used to be combating within the PFL first. What I used to be making, what I did make in my final [UFC] struggle, doesn’t even rely. It’s not shut, wherever shut.”
“Undoubtedly sure,” Ngannou added when requested if the purse was greater than his whole UFC profession mixed. “One-hundred p.c, sure. I didn’t make that a lot in my whole UFC profession, principally after turning down all these contracts that might have made me extra money. However sure, if we rely it, completely.”
Ngannou formally left the UFC originally of this 12 months after combating out his contract in 2022. The UFC tried to retain the providers of its heavyweight champion, with Ngannou saying they offered him “around $8 million” to face Jon Jones at UFC 285, however that he handed as a result of the contract was too restrictive. Ngannou reiterated that he’ll make extra for going through Fury, but additionally added that the UFC’s supply was not precisely what it appeared.
“I’ve heard so many occasions individuals say, ‘Oh, they provided him $8 million a struggle, they provided him this and that,’ which isn’t precisely what [they offered],” Ngannou stated. “There was a trick there and it was unhealthy. It was simply to ensure that me to place the pen on the paper. There was only one large quantity after which behind it the paper was clean, just about. So it’s not like, I’m certain you’re going to say $3 million occasions three, for 3 fights. That’s not what it was. It wasn’t like that. It was the identical tactic. To drag some quantity up and wish to impress you to get you to signal that contract.”
For all of the speak of cash, Ngannou nonetheless declined to disclose the precise financials behind his boxing superfight, however reports circulating estimate Ngannou’s payday to be in the eight figures. Ngannou himself didn’t verify that determine, nor whether or not he was getting pay-per-view factors, stating solely that he wouldn’t be leaving Saudi Arabia “empty-handed.”
However Ngannou was prepared to verify one other large piece of data concerning the struggle: The existence of a rematch clause.
“There’s a potential rematch clause,” Ngannou stated. “I don’t know precisely how one can clarify that language, however sure, there’s a rematch inside there.
“[If I win], positively,” Ngannou clarified. “[If Fury wins], I don’t know. We’ll see the way it goes. That’s why I’ve to win this struggle. I’ve to place every thing to get that rematch.”
Regardless of the financials find yourself in the end being, the struggle is already an unequivocal win for Ngannou, who primarily received every thing he wished when he first started negotiating his free company, and did so regardless of an infinite quantity of backlash and doubters.
And for the lineal heavyweight champion of MMA, that’s nearly as good of a sense as realizing that he’s going to financially set for the remainder of his life.
“It’s the story of my life,” Ngannou stated. “The whole lot that I’ve executed, no one has ever believed in me till it was executed. This was the case [here] and I felt fairly good about it. I used to be like, ‘Sure. I received it executed.’ Folks discuss, ‘How a lot you’re making, you’re making some huge cash,’ which is true, however my feeling wasn’t about what I’m going to make.
“It was like, ‘I received this executed yet one more time.’ My functionality to get issues executed, to hold on tight and at last get the result. It was extra about that. That was essentially the most thrilling one. I really feel relieved, I really feel glad. That was a hell of a sense.”
