Francis Ngannou responds to Dana White: According to UFC, ‘it was Jon Jones that didn’t want to fight me’

Francis Ngannou knows how the game works, especially when it comes to Dana White.

Now that he’s preparing for his PFL debut, which comes more than a year after he passed on a lucrative offer to stay with UFC and test free agency, the former heavyweight champion understands that his former boss can create whatever story White wants about avoiding a potential fight against Jon Jones.

Following the most recent edition of Contender Series, White put the blame on Ngannou in response to a question about that potential matchup, claiming, “You can’t make people fight and we couldn’t make Francis fight [Jon Jones].”

On Thursday during a pre-fight press conference to promote his fight against Renan Ferreira in October, Ngannou smiled when asked about White saying he was the one who prevented a fight against Jones from happening.

“I think that’s the new narrative since he needs to say something either way,” Ngannou said. “As far as I’m concerned, it was Jon Jones that didn’t want to fight me — according to them. So many times we sit down on the meeting, [they said,] ‘Oh, it can’t happen, Jon Jones doesn’t want to fight anymore. He’s living in Albuquerque, he’s living his small life, he has a lot of money in his bank account.’

“I think the guy who controls the narrative can say whatever he wants. But that’s just the narrative.”

While he’s openly pursued the fight against Jones for several years, Ngannou admits the only way he would’ve turned down that potential matchup was if it became a condition of his negotiations with the UFC.

Prior to leaving the company, Ngannou made it clear he was seeking some concessions in his contract to allow him more freedom to pursue outside interests, like the boxing matches he eventually landed with Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.

Ngannou also sought other conditions beyond just money that eventually led to him leaving the heavyweight title behind when he exited UFC.

Looking back now, the 37-year-old Cameroon native doesn’t have any regrets, but he can promise that he never just passed on Jones as an opponent.

“I was the one requesting the Jon Jones fight, but I didn’t want [to get trapped] into some deal and get to something that I didn’t want,” Ngannou said. “I wanted things to be straight and square. So yes, I wanted to fight Jon Jones but in good conditions. Not just to fight to be paid out.”