Francis Ngannou "beat" Tyson Fury but still "fumbled the bag" despite reported $10M payday, says Chael Sonnen in bizarre claim

Chael Sonnen recently shared an interesting perspective on the Francis Ngannou vs. Tyson Fury boxing match and surprisingly dismissed the narrative that the Cameroonian didn't make a financial mistake by parting with the UFC.

Ngannou made his highly-awaited boxing debut against the WBC heavyweight champion last weekend. 'The Predator' shockingly pushed Fury to his limits and nearly became the first to beat the WBC heavyweight champion. However, 'The Gypsy King' ultimately won via an extremely controversial split decision.

After Francis Ngannou left the UFC as an active heavyweight champion earlier this year to pursue his boxing dreams, many slammed his decision. They believed the Cameroonian made a mistake by not accepting the promotion's reported $8 million contract renewal agreement. UFC CEO Dana White was among the loudest and most prominent critics of Ngannou's exit.

In an interview with MMA Junkie, Chael Sonnen weighed in on Francis Ngannou reportedly making $10 million for boxing Tyson Fury and explained why the 'The Predator' still made a huge financial mistake by leaving the UFC. He said:

"I want to praise Francis today, but I do want the story told correctly. I think that he beat Fury... But I’ve already seen the story mistold, that he played this one and didn’t fumble the bag. Well, if the bag is a bag full of money, yes, he did."

He continued:

"To make believe that $10 million is somehow significantly more than he would’ve got on his pay-per-view participation alone against Jon Jones is incorrect... His four fights would’ve equaled $10 million had he promoted them. You’ve got to really understand this."

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Jon Jones reacts to Francis Ngannou almost beating Tyson Fury in boxing debut

UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones recently weighed in on Francis Ngannou nearly beating Tyson Fury in his boxing debut. Despite the bad blood between the two heavyweight juggernauts, 'Bones' praised 'The Predator' for his performance.

Ngannou and Jones have a history going back more than two years, dating back to when the Cameroonian defeated Stipe Miocic to win the heavyweight title at UFC 260 in March 2021. While they exchanged barbs online and in interviews, hoping the promotion would match them up, the fight never materialized.

Ngannou later left the UFC, and Jones made his return against Ciryl Gane in a heavyweight title fight at UFC 285 earlier this year. Jones won via a dominant first-round submission, and fans were left wondering how a potential Ngannou-Jones fight would play out.

In a recent tweet, Jon Jones surprisingly broke character by praising Francis Ngannou for his performance and wrote:

"I thought he did great, I’m glad the fight was competitive. Opens so many doors for everyone in the future."