‘I will not fight for $500,000 anymore’: Francis Ngannou demands new UFC deal amid pay dispute

The heavyweight champion is nearly at the end of his current contract

Heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou has said he will not fight in the UFC again unless he receives a new deal.

Ngannou has long expressed dissatisfaction with his pay in the mixed martial arts promotion and has recently pushed for a boxing match with Tyson Fury.

The French-Cameroonian is set to defend his heavyweight title for the first time when he takes on interim champion and former teammate Ciryl Gane next week, in what could be Ngannou’s last fight in the UFC.

UFC president Dana White suggested that Ngannou, 35, must see out one more bout if he beats Gane in the main event of UFC 270, but the champion has implied he will not take part in such a contest unless his pay is increased.

“No, I will not fight for $500,000, $600,000 anymore,” Ngannou told ESPN.

“It’s over. I took this fight for personal reasons, because I want to make sure that regardless of [whether] it’s fair, I can make my case that I have completed the fights.”

Ngannou also stressed his desire to have a boxing clause in any new UFC contract.

“One hundred per cent, [I need to box],” he said. “We’ve been having discussions for years.

“It seems like they are okay with it. Let’s be honest, I do believe that whatever you are doing – whatever the event is – if the UFC is involved, it’s just going to make it bigger. There is no question.

“So, yes, if I box, I would like the UFC to be on board.

“Honestly, the only reason we are here is that at some point, there wasn’t good faith in this. I don’t understand why we can’t come to an agreement.”