UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling can’t help but feel disappointed in how Francis Ngannou’s UFC story is ending. With Ngannou stripped of his title following his refusal to resign with the organization, Sterling discussed his take on the whole situation in a recent episode of The MMA Hour. I’m actually saddened by that, I’m not gonna lie.
If I’m being honest, I’m going to say I think both sides of the party messed up. I think Francis needs the UFC in regards to continuing his rise into the mainstream. People know who he is, but I think for him to get to that next level, if he beats a guy like Jon Jones, that’s undeniable.
Sterling “Saddened” By Ngannou UFC Exit
Now he goes out, he’s a free agent — how much money is he really going to generate from these other promotions? I don’t know. I have no inside information to know what that looks like. Can he get the Tyson Fury fight? If he does that, OK, good for him, because I think that’s going to do huge numbers — maybe.”
Sterling continued, pondering Ngannou’s chances in the squared circle. “Maybe people don’t think he has a chance. But if it’s the small gloves, like they were teasing the small gloves, that’s a very interesting boxing fight. So I look at it like that and I look at the UFC, you let the baddest man on the planet walk. Over what? Because the guy wants to do a boxing fight while he’s still under contract?
Conor did it. Why can’t Francis do it? And I don’t know if that’s the reason why they didn’t agree, I’m sure there’s a bunch of things we don’t see behind closed doors.
Outside of that, I don’t know if he goes to a Bellator, will he do the same? I don’t know if people are going to be tuning in to watch Francis in Bellator. I don’t know.
So I don’t know what the strategy really is. I just hope whatever he does, honestly, it’s the best financial means for him. That’s what I hope for it. I just feel like that [Jon Jones] fight should have been a one-off or maybe that should have been some type of negotiating factor, because I think that’s the one that’s going to put him at this meteoric place in his career, if that’s what he even wants.
Maybe he doesn’t even give a s***. Maybe he doesn’t even care.” What do you think? Let us know in the comments.
