Francis Ngannou: ‘I will always have a regret of not fighting Jon Jones’

Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou admits the Jon Jones fight will always be the one that got away.

Ngannou vs. Jones was the desired matchup for Jones’ heavyweight debut until Ngannou opted to part ways with the UFC while still champ. Jones ended up facing Ciryl Gane and quickly submitted him to claim the vacant belt this past March at UFC 285.

On Tuesday morning, Ngannou’s next move was made official when he signed with PFL, leaving no chance for the Jones fight to happen and making it a mere desire for both men.

“I will always have a regret of not fighting Jon Jones,” Ngannou said on ESPN’s “DC & RC.” “I think you know, being in the sport, being in this position, what you want to do is to test yourself against somebody like Jon Jones, who stands as a GOAT of the sport.”

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UFC president Dana White has openly been against cross promoting, making the idea of a fight between Ngannou and Jones all but impossible. Even though the matchup is currently in the rear-view mirror, Ngannou is still open if it’s somehow feasible. He understands the importance of the fight for both of their legacies.

“Still this day, I’m like, if ever there’s an opportunity to fight Jon Jones, we will do it,” Ngannou continued. “But I don’t know how. Maybe a cross promotion? I don’t know. But Jon Jones is somebody that anyone that’s looking to make a legacy in this sport would like to fight.

“It’s like back in the day, everybody has to fight – when you’re the guy, it’s good to fight Fedor because he was out there doing his thing, and he was the guy and you couldn’t argue that. I think it’s the same thing right now. And I think it goes both ways, even for Jon Jones. Even for Jon Jones, this was a good fight to make a statement.”

Jones took aim at Ngannou being presented as and calling himself the “baddest man on the planet” upon signing with PFL. It didn’t take long for Ngannou to respond.

Story originally appeared on MMA Junkie