"Los Angeles - Lineal heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou did exactly what was expected at the inaugural MMA event on Netflix on Saturday night. Jake Paul's MVP, who hosted the card, had tried to secure bigger name opponents for "The Predator," who left the UFC when his contract expired without ever losing his heavyweight championship. That included Rico Verhoeven, the GLORY kickboxing legend. Yet in the end they had to settle for Philipe Lins, the 2018 PFL heavyweight champion who like Ngannou had left the UFC on a win streak."
"Despite Lins pedigree (he'd won four straight at the end of his UFC run), the Brazilian wasn't given much of a chance against Ngannou. And he didn't last long, knocked out towards the end of the opening round. Ngannou (19-3) has now won both his fights in MMA since exiting the UFC. The question now becomes, what's next? The dream fight is Jon Jones, but Jones is unlikely to free himself from the grasp of the UFC, who seemingly shattered their relationship with "Bones" by refusing to let him compete on the White House card."
""I think it's up to Jon Jones, and I can give you something if you want," Ngannou said following the event at the Intuit Dome when asked about Jones, speaking with media outlets including Cageside Press. "I've been thinking about it, if I was him. I don't know if there's a sunset on that contract anymore. What I know, he signed his contract in 2023, so three years [prior to] now. So the sunset is two years from now. I'm just saying, hypothetically.""
"A sunset clause in his contract is how Ngannou escaped the UFC. Whether Jones has one is unknown, though he was on hand working the broadcast desk during the event. In any case, the UFC wasn't taking Saturday's Netflix card lightly. They opted to announce Conor McGregor vs. Max Holloway 2 just as Ngannou was making his walk to the cage. "And what the f*ck do I have to do with that? So I should stop my walkout and look what is going on"
Francis Ngannou won his MMA bout at the inaugural Netflix event by knocking out Philipe Lins late in the opening round. Lins entered with a strong background, including a four-fight win streak at the end of his UFC run and a 2018 PFL heavyweight championship, but he was not given much chance against Ngannou. Ngannou has now won both MMA fights since leaving the UFC. The next matchup question centers on Jon Jones, though Jones appears unlikely to leave the UFC. Ngannou suggested Jones could have a contract timeline that might open a future opportunity, while the UFC promoted other major fights around the event.
Read at Cageside Press
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