White wanted to cut Ngannou from the UFC in 2018: someone ‘begged me not to do it’

UFC CEO Dana White said Thursday he was considering releasing then-future heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou six years ago following his loss to Derrick Lewis.

“I wanted to cut Francis off when he lost two in a row,” White told reporters, courtesy of MMA Fighting. “I wanted to cut it. Someone here begged me not to do it.”

Ngannou dropped a unanimous decision to Lewis at UFC 226 in July 2018, in what is widely considered one of the worst fights in the promotion’s history. Previously, “The Predator” suffered a one-sided loss to Stipe Miocic in his first title fight.

Of course, Ngannou hasn’t lost in MMA since the Lewis fight. The Cameroonian scored four straight first-round knockouts – including against the likes of Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos – to secure a rematch with Miocic, whom he brutally defeated in March 2021 to capture the heavyweight title.

Ngannou defended the belt once, against Ciryl Gane in January 2022, before leaving the UFC as reigning heavyweight champion 12 months later to test free agency.

Ngannou signed a contract with the PFL in May 2023, switched to boxing to face Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, and finally returned to MMA just last weekend, defeating Renan Ferreira by first-round knockout in the PFL Super Fights: Battle of the Giants main event.

White and Ngannou have feuded in the media since his UFC departure. White has claimed that re-signing Ngannou would have made more money with the promotion – and on Thursday he reiterated that belief – but Ngannou said that wasn’t true.

“Francis is all about the money,” White said. “Francis left because he knew that if he fought (current UFC heavyweight champion) Jon Jones and didn’t win, it would hurt his chances of making the money he wanted to make. But realistically, his deal was bigger here. His deal would be bigger here if he stayed in the UFC.