Francis Ngannou still hopeful of Jon Jones fight regardless of UFC involvement: ‘It’s bigger than a title’

Francis Ngannou floats Jon Jones super fight in Saudi Arabia pre-PFL debut: 'It happens here'

Former undisputed heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou claims he is still holding out hope for an eventual tangle with long-time rival and incumbent UFC heavyweight champion, Jon Jones, regardless of an involvement or not from the promotion.

Ngannou, a former undisputed heavyweight champion under the banner of the UFC, has been sidelined from active competition since he headlined UFC 270 back in January of last year, landing a unanimous decision win over then-interim titleholder, Ciryl Gane

As for Jones, the Endicott native is slated to make his Octagon return against soon-to-be common-foe, Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 in November at Madison Square Garden, in the pair’s championship fight. 

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Set to make his return to active competition next month in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Ngannou, who has since penned a multi-fight deal with the PFL (Professional Fighters League) – will take on incumbent WBC heavyweight champion, Tyson Fury in a 10 round professional boxing match as part of his debut.

Francis Ngannou hopeful of eventual fight with Jon Jones in the future

However, as far as a miscued fight with former two-time light heavyweight champion, Jones is concerned, despite the fact the pair both fight currently for different organization, Ngannou insists he’s still hopeful of landing a blockbuster fight with the former.

“I don’t know, maybe it’ll be a special fight – a special belt or something, maybe not like a UFC belt,” Francis Ngannou said on The Joe Rogan Experience. “To be honest, I don’t worry about the title. The title is not what I worry about. I worry about that fight, that challenge.”

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“I wouldn’t care if it was a fight without a title,” Francis Ngannou explained. “In my mind, I don’t need a UFC title. That fight is bigger than a title. The fight is bigger than a title. Deep inside me, I still have a little bit of hope, even through I know it’s going to be hard. But, you never know.” 

Would you like to see Francis Ngannou fight Jon Jones in the future?