Dana White recently made a bold claim about former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou. He said Ngannou got physical with him during a heated exchange. White spoke up after after he publicly pushed for a fight with Jon Jones for the White House event.
Ngannou declined to the UFC’s contract extension after his deal expired in 2023. He then signed with the PFL, which allowed him to pursue boxing fights without restrictions.
That move frustrated White, who criticized Ngannou both personally and professionally since then. He now made a shocking revelation that the former heavyweight champion would typically use force to try and intimidate him.
During his appearance on comedian Andrew Schulz’s FLAGRANT podcast, White shared these stories and expressed disappointment with Ngannou. He claimed that ‘The Predator’ was aggressive when he confronted him after missing out on a post-fight bonus.
White said Ngannou visited his office shortly after the fight. He explained his reasoning for his bonus selections. According to the UFC CEO, Ngannou grabbed him and shoved him back into his office.
“[Ngannou] had just fought and he comes up to my office, and he’s in the hallway or whatever hanging out, and I said, ‘Come on in. What’s going on?’ And he was [upset] the he didn’t get a $50,000 [bonus] in his last fight,” White said. “He’s arguing with me and I’m like, ‘This got this, this guy got that and this is why.’ So the conversation’s over and I’m starting to leave, and he grabs me by my shirt and pushed me back in my office, and I said, ‘Dude, get your [expletive] hands off me.’”
Dana White Claims Francis Ngannou Demanded Private Plane
Dana White also claimed that this confrontation was not his first tense moment with Francis Ngannou. He recalled another encounter before his heavyweight title fight against Stipe Miocic at UFC 220.
White said the issues began after the press conference. He claimed Ngannou acted overconfident and made unexpected demands that he initially though was a joke.
The demand involved a private plane to France after the fight. Miocic went on to retain his title by unanimous decision. White said the result ended the entire plane discussion and added that he should have released Ngannou after that incident.
“[Ngannou] grabs me, and he says, ‘Let me tell you what’s going to happen.’ His English is [expletive] great, no language barrier whatsoever. ‘When this fight’s over, you’re going to book me a private plane to Paris,’” White told FLAGRANT. “Miocic beats the [expletive] out of him. So that ended that whole conversation. And I should have [expletive] cut him that day.”
White Claims There Was Similar Incident Between Ngannou and UFC Matchmaker
White also claimed that Ngannou once clashed with UFC matchmaker Hunter Campbell. He said the incident mirrored their earlier conflict with him.
According to White, Ngannou allegedly grabbed Campbell by the collar and pulled him back, demanding they continue their conversation. White insisted former heavyweight champion behaves very differently behind the scenes.
“[Ngannou and Campbell] were talking about something, it might have even been that same thing,” White told FLAGRANT. “When Hunter started to walk away, Francis grabbed him by the [expletive] back of his collar and [expletive] pulled him back and said, ‘We’re not done talking yet.’ So this guy’s not a good [expletive] guy. He’s a bad guy.”
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