Few fighters, if any, in combat sports had as great of a year in 2023 as Francis Ngannou.

No, Ngannou did not win a fight in 2023. He actually lost his lone combat sports appearance, which was his professional boxing debut. Tasked with one of the world’s best boxers in Tyson Fury, Ngannou found himself on the wrong end of a split decision in October but overperformed after joining the PFL roster — and office — earlier in the year. Overall, “The Predator’s” gamble paid off, to put things mildly.

To start the year, Ngannou was the UFC heavyweight champion, negotiating the possibility of a more flexible contract that would allow for such freedoms as boxing. Ultimately, Ngannou parted ways with the promotion and found what he was looking for with the PFL and his dream boxing match that paid him more than his entire UFC career, according to him.

“I had a lot of controversial opinions about my career decisions because most of those things was about my career this year,” Ngannou said on his YouTube channel. “Then negotiations with different organizations that were interested. A lot of them were just trying to navigate the narrative and potentially get some promotion. We have a lot of different people — some two faces.

“It’s part of the business and that’s something that I learned this year — how this business can be nasty. You have people who pretend to be something that they are not. But it’s a good part of the learning process. Becoming a fighter and stepping into that position is something you are not educated about. Most fighters never get educated, and that’s why for the most part, fighters keep getting screwed.”

Ngannou heavily weighed his options before settling on the PFL. Rumblings surfaced about a potential landing spot over in Asia with ONE Championship but turned out to be nothing more than smoke and mirrors, Ngannou said after concluding his free agency.

Future opponents of Ngannou in PFL are expected to receive million-dollar paydays just for competing against the elite heavyweight. Outside of his in-cage or ring fight career, Ngannou will also help develop African MMA for PFL as a part of its athlete advisory board. On top of it all, he’ll continue to seek potential massively lucrative boxing opportunities.

“I’m lucky I got into the position where I had to learn that, and then comes the PFL with a great offer, a great contract, and a great opportunity that I couldn’t turn down,” Ngannou said.

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VIDEO STEW

The MMA Hour.

UFC 2023 Year in Review Part 2.

Free fight.

Nothing like goodbodyworkk.

Jaw-dropping Invicta FC submissions.

Fancy armbar defense.

Mounted triangles.

MORNING MUSIC

SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE

Sigh.

Prospects arrive.

Irish.

Sweep the leg.

Gains.

Styles.

The callouts continue.

FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Tang Kai (17-2) vs. Thanh Le (14-3); ONE 166, March 1

Luis Pajuelo (8-1) vs. Fernando Padilla (15-5); UFC Vegas 88, March 23

Marvin Vettori (19-7-1) vs. Brendan Allen (23-5); UFC Vegas 87, April 6

FINAL THOUGHTS

Interesting matchmaking choice with Vettori vs. Allen but not the worst. Middleweight is a weird one these days… in a good way though. I think. Maybe.

Thanks for reading!

EXIT POLL

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