Sherdog’s 2023 Story of the Year

The seeds for Francis Ngannou’s discontent were sown long before he officially parted ways with the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

It’s not simply money. Obviously, money is a part of it, but it’s also the terms of the contract that I don’t agree with. I don’t feel like it’s fair. I don’t feel like I’m a free man. I don’t feel like I’ve been treated good. It’s unfortunate that I have to be in this position, that I have to say that. I feel like everyone should have the right to claim for what’s best for them. At the end of the day, we put [in] a lot of work for this job and we take a lot on our body to make it happen so we can have a fair and square deal.

Those were Ngannou’s words following his last successful heavyweight title defense, a unanimous decision triumph against Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 in January 2022—a victory he earned while fighting on an injured knee that would sideline him for the rest of that year. The Cameroonian-born Frenchman had failed to come to terms with the Las Vegas-based promotion on a new deal prior to the event, and by the time 2023 rolled around, both sides were ready to move on.

Coincidentally, Ngannou’s UFC exit coincided with the Octagon return of Jon Jones, a man whom the departing champion had been circling on social media for years before “Bones” ended a three-year hiatus. On Jan. 14, Dana White announced that Ngannou was free to pursue other options, while Jones and Gane would square off for the vacant heavyweight crown at UFC 285. As one might expect, the UFC CEO did not exactly wish Ngannou a fond farewell.

“We’ve been negotiating with [Ngannou] for more than two years,” White said. “We offered Francis a deal that would’ve made him the highest-paid heavyweight in the history of the company—more than [Brock] Lesnar, more than anybody, and he turned the deal down.”

Thus began the narrative that Ngannou “fumbled the bag” by choosing a path that did not include the world’s largest MMA organization. What transpired was a year that surpassed all expectations, perhaps with the exception of those Ngannou set for himself. Ngannou’s journey from scorned UFC free agent to one of the biggest crossover combat sports success stories in recent memory is Sherdog.com’s selection for 2023 “Story of the Year,” surpassing the Professional Fighters League’s acquisition of Bellator MMA—a tale for which many chapters are certain to be written in the months to come.

Ngannou’s success story was something of a slow burn. “The Predator” revealed that he asked the UFC for the ability to negotiate with outside sponsors, health insurance and for having a fighter advocate during talks with promotion. Those, along with the request to pursue high-profile boxing matches while under contract, were denied. White, in typical fashion, implied that Ngannou was seeking fights against lesser opposition and had become overweight during his recovery from knee surgery.

“In that contract, I’m not free,” Ngannou said on “The MMA Hour.” “I’m not an independent contractor. I have no rights. I hand over all the power to you guys. I’ve seen in the past how you guys can utilize your power against me, and I don’t want that.”

To his credit, Ngannou remained patient during the free agency process, even as it was suggested that his star was beginning to lose its shine. ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong announced that the promotion elected not to submit a final offer to Ngannou due to a “lack of alignment,” while BKFC president David Feldman suggested that the ex-heavyweight king was asking for “unrealistic money.”

In July, Ngannou signed with the PFL, which gave him the type of contract rarely seen in MMA circles. Not only did he have the freedom to pursue professional boxing matches without the promotion’s involvement, but he was named chairman of PFL Africa, was given a seat on an advisory board representing fighter interests and will be allowed to seek his own sponsorship opportunities. Ngannou was more than willing to spread the wealth, as he has promised $2 million to his first PFL opponent.

“A deal like this, I couldn’t have it, not anywhere close. Nobody has something close like this,” he said in a video on his YouTube channel. “The good thing is that I’m joining them on a goal that they have. Our needs align together, and it was a perfect fit. It was the best professional decision that I have ever made. It was the best business decision that I have ever made.”

Ngannou also offered assurance that he had the situation under control the entire time.

“I appreciate your concern, I appreciate your worries about me, but man, believe me, I’m doing great,” he added. “With all due respect to all the other promotions, nobody could really get anywhere close to this point. All the stuff that mattered to me, nobody really cared about it. Everybody just wants to get a fight out of you and shake hands, goodbye, which is something I don’t have here. No matter what other promoters say, no matter what some fighters say, no matter what some media say, who do you think is the baddest motherf---er on the planet? Me.”

With that, Ngannou had already proved the naysayers wrong—but the best was yet to come. The last domino fell when it was confirmed that Ngannou would cross over into the Sweet Science to face Tyson Fury on Oct. 28 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. That by itself would be enough to earn the heavyweight star riches far beyond what most MMA athletes typically earn. However, simply “getting the bag” would not suffice.

“What doesn’t matter is what [Fury] says. What matters is what’s gonna happen in Saudi, and in Saudi, he’s gonna hit the canvas. I can tell you that,” Ngannou told TMZ Sports before the fight. “He’s gonna hit the canvas. I don’t know how you call that, but I know that he’s going to the canvas. He’s good at [getting] back up, but we’re gonna find out how good he is. But he’s gonna hit that canvas.”

Ngannou proved to be prescient when he floored the heavily-favored Fury with a left hook in the third stanza, setting the stage for a 10-round fight that was much more competitive than expected. This was not Conor McGregor landing a few punches on Floyd Mayweather in the early frames; this was a heavy-handed MMA fighter throwing a legitimate scare into the world’s best heavyweight boxer. While Fury ultimately emerged with a contentious split decision, Ngannou proved that he belonged—and many observers felt he deserved the nod on the scorecards.

Ngannou had no illusions about what the outcome would be if his fight against Fury went to the judges.

“Even before getting here, I knew if this fight gets to a decision, I’m not winning—not because I didn’t do good, [but] because I’m the new guy in the house,” Ngannou said. “I come here, and I just want to kick into people’s business. There’s a structure of business out there and you need to do a lot to destroy it. I wasn’t just expecting to win like that in a decision, but it is what it is. I do my job. I know that I did everything I could’ve done. I did my best. Maybe next time I should just do better to convince people.”

In defeat, he earned the respect of Fury, who claimed that Ngannou was his toughest opponent in a decade. He also received a World Boxing Council ranking despite having lost his only professional appearance. Most impressively, Ngannou created an alternate career pathway where he will not have to compete in MMA if he doesn’t want to. At least for now, Ngannou plans on making his PFL debut sometime in 2024.

“I can do both. Nothing can stop me from doing both,” Ngannou told ESPN. “If I have the skill for both of them, why not? As for right now, I have a deal with PFL, and I’m intending to fight MMA again. I still love it. I might do some MMA fight, but I’m still going to do boxing. I never intend to just step over and do one fight and go out. That wasn’t the plan at all, never. The plan is still the same.”

If there’s anything to be learned from the past year, it’s to take Ngannou at his word.