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UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou still has his eyes firmly set on a crossover superfight between himself and boxing star Tyson Fury.
'The Predator' recently responded to a post from Fury, who added an image of a chicken above Ngannou's head and demanded the fight be at Wembley Stadium by the end of this year. The 35-year-old UFC champ reassured fans and 'The Gypsy King' himself that it's still the fight he wants, but proposed their bout for 2023 instead.
Francis Ngannou suffered a serious knee injury during his training camp ahead of his fight with then-interim heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane back in January. Despite winning, Ngannou revealed that he had a torn MCL and damaged ACL before making the octagon walk and would require immediate surgery, putting him out of action for many months.
"Don't you dare think that I take my eyes out of you. You're still my priority! I'm coming for all the smoke. 2023."
While both Ngannou and Fury have made it clear they want the fight to happen, the Cameroonian is still in the midst of a contractual dispute with the UFC. The 35-year-old's deal is up in December and Ngannou has admitted he will happily sign a new one should the UFC agree to co-promote a bout with Tyson Fury.
Dana White has been publicly against the idea since his co-promotional stint in 2017 for Conor McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather. White has often stated that he doesn't want to co-promote Ngannou's fight and is seemingly willing to let the heavyweight champ walk away from the UFC.
Francis Ngannou's issues with the UFC isn't just Dana White
Although the relationship between Francis Ngannou and Dana White has seemingly soured, 'The Predator' has often spoken out about his issues within the UFC. The heavyweight champion has been very critical of the promotion's sponsorship structure, including their latest deal with Crypto.com.
UFC fighter pay is often criticized and Ngannou believes that UFC sponsorship deals take away a large portion of potential revenue for fighters. Speaking on the True Geordie Podcast back in March, the Cameroonian revealed that the Crypto.com deal with the UFC cost him over $1 million.
"Like recently, they signed a huge deal with Crypto.com. That was a good deal for them. What [is there] for fighters? Nothing, right? But guess what? That deal [took] money out of my pocket, at least one million. We have a competitive offer from Coinbase. And then when the Crypto.com announcement came out, I'm like, 'Listen guy, we can't do this.' What did I get from that Crypto deal? Nothing."
Catch the full podcast episode below:
Fans will hope that despite his issues with Dana White and the UFC, they will see the heavyweight champion make his return to the octagon.
Jon Jones is expected to face Stipe Miocic before the end of the year, which could set up a highly-anctipated clash between 'The Predator' and 'Bones' should the former still be under UFC contract.
