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Francis Ngannou's coach recently cleared the air regarding the potential heavyweight clash against Jon Jones. Jones expressed interest in fighting Ngannou, but the only hurdle is that they compete for different promotions.
The rumors began after Ngannou's coach Eric Nicksick said in a recent interview that he believes his pupil is a competitor that wants to compete against the very best. He admitted that his words were taken out of context as being a sign that 'The Predator' was in negotiations to return to the UFC, which wasn't the case at all. He is currently under contract with PFL, which includes him being at the helm of PFL Africa.
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In the latest episode of his Verse Us with Eric Nicksick podcast, the Xtreme Couture coach clarified his stance on a potential Ngannou vs. Jones clash. Nicksick mentioned that his comments were solely from a fans' perspective as the heavyweight clash had long been a bout fans were clamoring for when both were under contract with the UFC. He said:
"It was two fans of the sport, myself and Dan Tom, huge fans of the sport, and where the heavyweight division's at right now as a whole... Yeah, Francis wants to make himself available to whatever options that he needs and I don't know what his deal is with the PFL... This was not ever me speaking on behalf of Francis, this was me speaking on behalf of us being fans, not even as Francis' coach. It's like, dude, this is what we would all love to see."
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Check out Eric Nicksick's comments below (5:14):
Eric Nicksick says he wouldn't want Francis Ngannou taking Tom Aspinall's fight against Jon Jones
Eric Nicksick also opined that he wouldn't want to see Francis Ngannou replace Tom Aspinall's spot in a potential heavyweight clash against Jon Jones.
In the aforementioned episode, Nicksick mentioned that if Ngannou returned to the UFC, his opponent would have to be Jones::
"There's a part of me from a human element like, I would hate to see us come and just leapfrog Tom [Aspinall]... But yes, that's the only thing that motivates Francis too. I don't want to speak for Francis but that's the fight, it's Jon and Francis." [9:03]
Check out Jon Jones' post expressing interest in fighting Francis Ngannou below:
