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Francis Ngannou left the UFC while he was the reigning heavyweight champion resulting in the championship being vacated. If 'The Predator' had not left the promotion, the heavyweight division would have looked drastically different with several options available.
At UFC 270, Ngannou fought out the last bout of his contract with the promotion after earning a unanimous decision win over Ciryl Gane to retain his title. In the months that followed, there was speculation as to what his next move would be as the promotion attempted to re-sign him while he recovered from his surgery.
Last January, Dana White announced that 'The Predator' was a free agent after turning down their latest contract offer. After negotiating with other promotions, Ngannou signed a very lucrative deal with the PFL that would also allow him to pursue boxing bouts.
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In doing so, there were many potential UFC bouts left on the table that fans will likely be curious about in the future.
Check out Francis Ngannou's PFL announcement below:
How would the UFC heavyweight division have looked like if Francis Ngannou re-signed?
Many exciting bouts could have materialized if Francis Ngannou re-signed with the UFC rather than joining the PFL. If he re-signed, the top-five would have been very interesting and filled with exciting matchups.
The highly anticipated bout against Jon Jones was at the top of the list of dream fights as there was plenty of interest for 'Bones' heavyweight debut to be against 'The Predator'. The heavyweight title clash could have been a lucrative bout for the promotion as fans would get the answer to whether Jones could take Ngannou's power.
Ngannou could have also competed in rematches with Stipe Miocic and Derrick Lewis. 'The Predator' defeated Miocic to win the heavyweight championship, but had suffered a loss to him in his previous title attempt. There could have been an argument for a trilogy to materialize, especially considering the former champion is expected to challenge Jones when he returns.
Lewis, on the other hand, defeated Ngannou at UFC 226, so he could have had an opportunity to avenge another loss. 'The Predator' could have also fought the next wave of top-ranked heavyweights including Sergei Pavlovich and interim champion Tom Aspinall, which could have added to his legacy.
Check out Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones' staredown below:
