Former UFC champion Francis Ngannou is nearing a deal with an unnamed promotion after it was revealed he won't be signing with ONE Championship. Ariel Helwani relayed the news during The MMA Hour, noting he spoke to Ngannou, who he said is "very close" to signing a deal with another promotion and was "very up front about this" during his talks with ONE Championship.
Earlier Monday, ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong, confirmed to Nicolas Atkin of the South China Morning Post that Ngannou wouldn't be joining after talks between the sides. "I met with Francis yesterday for almost three hours," Sityodtong said. "ONE has decided to withdraw from the process of bidding for Francis Ngannou's services." Sityodtong added he didn't believe he and Ngannou "were fully aligned on nonfinancial matters."
Ngannou remains unsigned following his release from UFC in January. He had been the company's heavyweight champion at the time after winning a unanimous decision over Ciryl Gane in his last appearance at UFC 270 in January. The 36-year-old is a hot commodity as a free agent, but the absence of a deal so far shows how he's prepared to drive a hard bargain.
In March, Bellator MMA president Scott Coker told MMA Junkie's Farah Hannoun and Matt Erickson said the company was in negotiations with Ngannou but that "I don't think that there's anything close to a deal being presented back and forth." Coker added the odds of reaching an agreement were probably 50-50. David Feldman, the president of Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, was more blunt about Ngannou's demands.
"Francis Ngannou, he's somebody we've certainly reached out to," Feldman told reporters this month. "We've reached out to him, we've reached out to his team, and we just feel like he's asking for unrealistic money, and we're not willing to pay that kind of money for him."
Based on Helwani's report, it appears the 6'4" heavyweight is finally nearing a resolution in the hunt for his next fight.
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