Francis Ngannou defeated Cyril Gane at UFC 270 in Anaheim, California to retain his heavyweight title before facing questions about his future amid a contract dispute with the promotion.
In the run-up to the fight, the Senegalese fighter revealed he had torn ligaments in his knee and changed strategy to deal with the threat of his former sparring partner Gane.
“I believe I have the ability to do this (fight). I believe in myself. I’ve been through a lot in my life,” Ngannou said at a news conference after the match on Saturday night.
After moving to France to become a boxer, the 35-year-old was homeless for a period before joining Fernand Lopez’s gym, the MMA Factory in Paris, where he slept while being moulded into one of the sport’s most feared fighters.
The California State Athletic Commission reports Ngannou’s purse for the title defence was $600,000, a fraction of what he could earn in a boxing match with the likes of Tyson Fury.
However, the fighter feels he deserves more, considering that the fee does not include any potential share of the pay-per-view revenue.
“It’s not simply money. Obviously, money is a part of it, but it’s also the terms of the contract. I don’t agree with it, I don’t feel like it’s fair, I don’t feel like I’m free, I don’t feel like I have been treated good,” Ngannou told reporters.
UFC president Dana White did not attend the press conference following the fight.
In the co-main event, Brazilian Deiveson Figueiredo defeated Mexican Brandon Moreno by unanimous decision to regain the flyweight belt he lost the last time the two met in June 2021.