'Beyond petty'… Fight fans explode after Francis Ngannou left out of Top 100 UFC APEX knockouts
Yesterday at 06:00 PM
One of Francis Ngannou’s wildest knockouts was curiously left out of the UFC’s Top 100 Apex knockouts compilation.
Since the UFC and Francis Ngannou parted ways in 2023, things have remained testy between the two sides. After a lengthy contract dispute, Ngannou opted to decline the UFC’s final contract offer and test free agency, signing with the PFL and making his professional boxing debut.
In recent weeks, Ngannou and UFC CEO Dana White have traded barbs in the media over their messy split. White went as far as to claim he wanted to cut Ngannou repeatedly during his UFC tenure but was persuaded by business partners to keep him on the roster.
Ngannou went on to win the UFC heavyweight championship by knocking out Stipe Miocic at UFC 260. The UFC Apex pay-per-view headliner was one of the most-anticipated fights at the time.
Ahead of UFC Vegas 100, the promotion’s 100th event at the Las Vegas Apex facility, the UFC ranked the Top 100 knockout victories earned at the venue. Ngannou’s finish of Miocic, which took place under the UFC’s massive spotlight during the COVID-19 pandemic, was left out.
MMA fans react to the UFC’s latest attempt to omit Francis Ngannou
UFC fans around the world were up in arms at Ngannou’s UFC 260 knockout being left out of the compilation. Shortly after the video was posted to the UFC’s YouTube channel, many fans scolded the promotion on social media.
“That’s beyond petty,” one fan wrote on X.
“Purely a business decision,” another fan said.
One fan took things a step further, directly blaming White for Ngannou’s omission.
“It’s an okay knockout, not top 100 worthy though” – Dana probably.”
Ngannou’s omission continued to cause an uproar on social media with fight fans.
“Tactically made it a 100 knockout compilation and not a top 100,” one fan wrote.
“Don't want to put any shade on Stipe so their fight looks more serious and they just hate Francis,” another fan commented.
“I get he is not in the UFC anymore, but just acting like he didn’t exist makes it worse for the ufc,” a critical fan posted.
Miocic, who Ngannou knocked out at UFC 260, will make his long-awaited return to the Octagon at UFC 309 later this month against Jon Jones. It’s his first fight since the knockout defeat to Ngannou.
UFC continues to erase Francis Ngannou’s history after messy divorce
This isn’t the first time Ngannou has been conveniently left out of the UFC’s history books. Just months after Ngannou’s departure, a fight graphic tabbed Tafon Nchukwi as the UFC’s first Cameroonian fighter, which Ngannou quickly corrected on social media.
The UFC was also accused of deceptively editing a clip of Israel Adesanya paying homage to Ngannou at a press conference. At a pre-fight press conference ahead of UFC 306, Adesanya alluded to Ngannou as one of the UFC’s first African-born champions, but the UFC later posted a clip without the reference.
Ngannou made his MMA return against 2023 PFL heavyweight champion Renan Ferreira last month. He defeated Ferreira by first-round TKO almost three full years since his last appearance in the cage.
After capturing the UFC heavyweight title at UFC 260, a superfight between Ngannou and Jones was discussed, but never came to fruition. A year later, Ngannou made his lone UFC heavyweight title defense against former teammate Ciryl Gane at UFC 270.
While Ngannou is no longer a part of the UFC’s roster, he remains in the hearts and minds of many UFC fans around the world. Unfortunately, things between Ngannou and the UFC will likely get worse before they get better.
