Francis Ngannou slams UFC and claims fighters are being ‘ripped off’ over sponsorships deals
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Francis Ngannou slams UFC and claims fighters are being ‘ripped off’ over sponsorships with the heavyweight champion claiming he lost out on a ‘deal of over a MILLION dollars’ due to the promotion’s exclusive deals
- Francis Ngannou has spoke out over the UFC’s sponsorship deals on Twitter
- The heavyweight champion claimed he has lost out on over a million dollars
- Ngannou questioned why fighters are not allowed to have their own deals
- The UFC has implemented a uniform policy for all fighters since 2015
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UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou has taken to Twitter to speak out about the UFC’s uniform policies in the midst of the debate regarding fighter compensation in the organisation.
In a series of tweets, Ngannou explained that he believes that fighter’s are currently being ‘ripped off’ by the promotion in terms of sponsorships.
‘Listening to Luke [Rockhold’s] interview was very pertinent. A lot of things that nobody is talking about it and the company just rolls with it.’
Francis Ngannou has criticised the UFC’s rules regarding sponsorship for fighters
The 35-year-old heavyweight champion explained his views in a series of tweets
Ngannou was referring to comments made by former UFC Middleweight Champion Luke Rockhold earlier this week ahead of his clash with Paulo Costa on Saturday.
Speaking to reporters prior during a UFC media event, Rockhold detailed that issues that he has with the way is ran by promoter Dana White:
‘These guys don’t know what they’re doing. They’re just letting Dana [White] run the show and suppress the sport.’
‘They need to grow, this whole f**king thing needs to grow together. Our lives are on the f**king line. Health care needs to be taken care of, our f**king health needs to be taken care of. Mine has not been taken care of.’ Rockhold added.
Former UFC champion Luke Rockhold criticised the promotion earlier this week
Ngannou continued, explaining that the promotion’s current rules surrounding sponsorship are ‘ripping off’ fighters, and claiming that the UFC is exploiting it ‘for their own benefit.’
‘Fighters are ripped off with Sponsorship. It’s a huge source of revenue for us but the company keeps exploiting that for their own benefit.’
‘I understand that the sport needs to look good with uniforms but we should at least have a right for a minimum of 2 approved sponsors for in the octagon.’
Since 2015 the UFC has implemented a uniform policy for all fighters, signing exclusive deals with sportswear companies to provide branded uniforms. Each fighter is then provided with set pay based on the number of fights they have had with the promotion.
Prior to this, fighters were permitted to wear their own apparel in the Octagon, and were entitled to keep the proceeds of any sponsorships they could generate on their fight shorts.
Ngannou further explained that the UFC’s exclusive partnership with Crypto.com forced him to miss out on deal worth over a million dollars with another cryptocurrency exchange.
‘Last year I lost a deal of over a million dollars from a crypto exchange because the partnership with CRYPTO .COM What do I got from it?’
Ngannou last fought in January, defending his heavyweight title against Cyril Gane
The 35-year-old hasn’t fought since January, after suffering a torn MCL whilst retaining his UFC Heavyweight Championship against Cyril Gane in what was believed to be the final fight of his UFC contract.
The Cameroonian star then set his sights on a crossover fight with Tyson Fury set for the boxing ring at the end of the year, though the Gypsy King’s recent retirement appears to have nixed plans.
The debate surrounding fighter pay has been ramped up in recent weeks, fuelled by comments made by UFC President Dana White during a recent interview in which he claimed that an increase in compensation is ‘never gonna happen’ during his time at the helm of the promotion.