Last night at UFC 260, Francis Ngannou (16-3) became the heavyweight champion of the world. To do that, he knocked out the greatest heavyweight champion in UFC history, Stipe Miocic (20-4).
Ngannou showed incredible improvement and poise as he knocked out the former champion in the second round. After the fight was over, immediately people started talking about the potential matchup with Jon Jones (26-1, 1 NC).
Jones is widely considered to be the greatest fighter of all time. He’s currently been transforming his body as he prepares for the heavyweight division. It’s been understood for weeks that Jones would take on the winner.
However, Dana White through some cloudiness into that last night. White suggested that the UFC could pivot to a fight with Derrick Lewis. Lewis is considered to be the top contender that sits in the heavyweight division.
Of course, this didn’t sit well with Jones. The UFC President said last night that if Jones prices himself out of the fight, it’s another way of him basically saying he doesn’t want the fight. Jones was not thrilled with the comments.
UFC to submit an offer this week
Around this same time nearly a year ago, we faced a similar position. Jones was interested in moving up to the UFC’s heavyweight division to take on Ngannou in a one-off superfight.
However, after the UFC failed to up the offer to Jones and a public spat ensued. Jones even publicly asked the promotion to release him due to the poor financial negotiations.
The former UFC light heavyweight champion vacated his title in the fall as he prepared to move to heavyweight. It seemed like the fences had been mended between Jones and the UFC up until last night.
That’s when the narrative seemed to change out of no where with White’s comments. Jones said on Twitter this afternoon that the UFC is going to be coming to him with an offer this week to fight Ngannou.
If the fight meets Jones’ expectations, we are likely going to see Jones get booked against the new heavyweight champion. However, if there’s any snag whatsoever, I would expect a quick pivot to the UFC and Derrick Lewis (25-7, 1 NC) will get the shot.
I am going to try to remain faithful. There’s still time for the UFC to do the right thing. I am supposed to be seeing a fight proposal next week. Fingers are crossed, this is an opportunity of a lifetime for everyone involved.
— BONY (@JonnyBones) March 28, 2021