UFC CEO Dana White said Thursday he contemplated releasing then-future heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou six years ago after his loss to Derrick Lewis.
"I was gonna cut Francis when he lost two in a row," White told reporters, courtesy of MMA Fighting. "I was gonna cut him. Somebody around here begged me not to do it."
Ngannou dropped a unanimous decision to Lewis at UFC 226 in July 2018 in what is widely considered one of the worst fights in promotion history. Before that, "The Predator" suffered a lopsided defeat to Stipe Miocic in his first title shot.
Of course, Ngannou hasn't lost in MMA since the Lewis fight. The Cameroonian scored four consecutive first-round knockouts - including against the likes of Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos - to earn a rematch with Miocic, who he brutally finished in March 2021 to capture the heavyweight title.
Ngannou defended the belt once, against Ciryl Gane in January 2022, before leaving the UFC as the reigning heavyweight champion 12 months later to test free agency.
Ngannou signed a deal with the PFL in May 2023, crossed over to boxing to face Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, and, just last weekend, finally returned to MMA and defeated Renan Ferreira by first-round knockout in the PFL Super Fights: Battle of the Giants main event.
White and Ngannou have feuded in the media since the latter's UFC departure. White has claimed Ngannou would've earned more money by re-signing with the promotion - and he doubled down on that notion Thursday - but Ngannou has said that's not true.
"Francis is all about the money," White said. "Francis left because he knew that if he fought (current UFC heavyweight champion) Jon Jones and didn't win, it would hurt his chances of making the money that he wanted to make. But realistically, his deal was bigger here. His deal was bigger here if he stayed in the UFC."
