'The fight I’ve always asked for'... Francis Ngannou sends message to Jon Jones after winning MMA comeback in one round as he eyes title unification

Oct 22, 2024

Francis Ngannou has said that a fight with Jon Jones would be the one that might finally satisfy his competitive desire.

The lineal heavyweight champion made his PFL debut on Saturday night as part of their Super Fights pay-per-view event in Riyadh. He stopped Renan Ferreira within a round, and there is now intrigue regarding what’s next for him in either the Smart Cage or the boxing ring.

No fight stands out to fans and experts more than a world title unification with UFC champion Jones, although a co-promotion seems increasingly unlikely. Both men are keen on it, and there is still dispute over who is the legitimate heavyweight champion.

After a nearly-three-year absence that included surgeries, lengthy contract disputes and a run in the boxing ring, Francis Ngannou finally returned to the cage in Riyadh. And he didn’t bother with a tune-up, immediately taking on the challenge of 2023 PFL champion Renan Ferreira.

The majority of pre-fight bets came in for the 6’8 Brazilian, who had just knocked out Bellator champion Ryan Bader to consolidate his spot as the best heavyweight outside of the UFC. And there was legitimate belief that Ngannou might have his hands full, particularly after an intense final face-off.

Once the first bell went, Ngannou went on the offensive and even managed to land a few shots as they traded on the feet. But he showed off his impressive wrestling, landing a massive takedown that saw him take control on the ground.

And after surviving a triangle attempt from Ferreira, Ngannou landed some nasty ground and pound to finish the fight. Many felt the bout could have been stopped considerably earlier, with the Cameroonian landing a number of unanswered punches on the ground.

Watching intently as Ngannou landed the victory was his UFC counterpart Jon Jones. The American was impressed with what he saw, telling fans on social media that he was legitimately excited to see such a successful comeback.

“What an amazing job Francis did tonight,” Jones wrote in a message to his nearly 3million followers. “Displayed a complete MMA game. Great kicks, great takedowns. It feels good to see him shine. Wow congratulations Champ, I see you.”

However, his nice act only lasted a few moments as he sent a veiled threat in response to a fan claiming that Ngannou would “smoke” him. “Sure,” he wrote. “Everyone beats me up until they’re in there with me.”

For his part, Ngannou has always been clear with what he wants when it comes to MMA. He faced off with Jones in the summer of 2023 and believes that the pair should be able to compete in a cross-promotional bout.

🚨🚨 FRANCIS NGANNOU EST CHAUD POUR PRENDRE JON JONES DANS UN PFL 🆚 UFC CHAMPIONS !!!🗣️ « C’est un combat que j’ai toujours demandé. Si il y a l’opportunité de prendre ce combat je le prends. Si je devais choisir mon dernier combat ça serait celui-là. »Via conf de presse pic.twitter.com/E4RzLIofuD

And asked about the potential of the pair meeting on Saturday night, he noted that if he could only take one more fight in his life, he would want it to be against his long-time rival. “You know it’s a fight I’ve always asked for,” Ngannou told media in French during his post-fight press conference.

“It’s been 4 years or more that I’ve been asking for this fight. So if in the future there’s an opportunity to do this fight, I think if I only ever had one fight to be in, and I had to choose, it would be this one.”