Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou are two of MMA’s biggest superstars in the heavyweight division. A super fight between both the heavyweights is on the wishlist of many MMA fans. Rising boxing star Jake Paul knows who is responsible for that super fight not happening. As such, he believes Dana White is the sole obstacle to making that fight become a reality.
In his heavyweight debut, Jon Jones was expected to fight Francis Ngannou for the UFC title. Jones never got the opportunity due to Ngannou’s voluntary departure from the promotion. The departure came after a lengthy and time-wasting negotiation over a new contract. Recently, Jake Paul accused Dana White of not making the fight that everybody wants in a conversation with Ngannou.
It’s so sad that the fights that Dana’s blocking. There’s just so much fun that could be had in the fight world but greed is a crazy sin.
Jake Paul via BS w/ Jake Paul Podcast
Since the fallout with UFC, Dana White has mostly controlled the narrative that Ngannou ducked Jones and didn’t want to fight. Ngannou, on the other hand, always talked about wanting to fight Jon Jones. Legacy-wise, it made no sense to avoid a Jon Jones matchup. However, in retrospect, his decision to leave UFC turned out to be the right one.
Ngannou participated in two high-profile boxing bouts and earned a lot of money. His multi-million dollar contract with PFL was another example of a great success. Financially, it made much sense as the UFC would have hampered it. Legacy-wise, he lost twice in the boxing ring and suffered a brutal knockout.
After much time in the loss column, he can finally rebound when he faces Renan Ferreira in October. Interestingly, Paul has previously mentioned that White was actually scared of putting Jones in front of a dangerous Ngannou. However, his animosity towards the CEO goes way back.
When Jake Paul slammed ‘greedy’ Dana White for not paying his fighters enough
Jake Paul and Dana White have a long-standing rivalry that involves public insults, personal and professional remarks, and mutual aggravation. White has labeled Paul as a publicity seeker who beats up veteran fighters to keep his fighting career alive. On the other hand, Paul has regularly criticized White for UFC fighters’ pay and lack of healthcare coverage.
Jake Paul and Dana White (via Imago)A few years back, White gifted a whopping $250K as a birthday gift to one of the members of Nelk Boys. This prompted fans to criticize White for not paying his fighter enough instead of handing gifts like that. White was also blasted by Paul, who accused the CEO of being greedy.
It’s embarrassing and it shows just how much of a scumbag Dana White is. How could you do that to your fighter? You’re giving a birthday gift to someone but your own flyweight champion (Deiveson Figueiredo), you can’t pay him enough and there’s no healthcare for his fighters. People are really starting to see how greedy this guy is.
Jake Paul via WFAN Sports Radio
As expected, White had a fiery response and asked his critics to cry about it rudely. For White, it was just one of several online disputes he’s had with Paul. Recently, White revealed that he stopped noticing Paul after he lost to Tommy Fury, the only quality opponent on his resume. It would be interesting to see if the pair ever forget their differences and collaborate.
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