Surprised Robert Whittaker reacts to Francis Ngannou's release from the UFC

Robert Whittaker recently described the news of Francis Ngannou's UFC departure as coming out of "left field."

Whittaker appeared as shocked by the announcement as the rest of the MMA community, who had been eagerly anticipating a possible matchup between Ngannou and the returning Jon Jones.

'The Predator' was the heavyweight champion at the time of his exit, which added to the surprising nature of the decision. With it, arguably the most terrifying man in MMA is no longer competing in the premier promotion, and his future looks unclear.

'The Reaper' was recently interviewed by mainevent, during which he was asked what he thought of Ngannou's exit. Robert Whittaker said:

"You'd think the UFC would never [let Ngannou go]. Once they've got a grip on a fighter they don't like releasing them... We've seen in history that they don't like releasing their fighters. And for someone of such a high caliber, someone of such high standing in the UFC, current champion at the time, [to] be released like he did. It was really out of left field."

Watch the interview below:

Robert Whittaker's observation regarding the UFC preferring to retain big-name fighters, as opposed to releasing them, rings true.

Notably, Georges St-Pierre stated in 2021 that he was blocked by the UFC from participating in a charity boxing match against Oscar De La Hoya. Despite 'Rush' retiring from MMA, his standing contract at the time prevented him from competing elsewhere.

Similarly, Francis Ngannou wanted a clause to be included in his new deal that allowed him to compete in boxing matches, which the UFC refused. Ngannou was recently interviewed by Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, explaining the deal he proposed.

Ngannou said:

"Let's get a three-fight deal, I can do three fights in one year if I'm not hurt, and then I can go do boxing. And if [the UFC] at this time find a interest in doing boxing together, then we do it."

Watch the video below:

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Robert Whittaker predicts upcoming bout between Jon Jones and Ciryl Gane

Jon Jones will make his UFC return at heavyweight and will be thrust into a title fight against Ciryl Gane. The bout was scheduled following Francis Ngannou's release, which automatically vacated the title. It will headline UFC 285 on March 4.

Robert Whittaker appeared ecstatic about the return of 'Bones' and broke the fight down during the same interview. 'The Reaper' said the following:

"Jon Jones is gonna take him down and lay on him, and finish him there. Jones' wrestling is next caliber. Nobody comes close to what Jon Jones can produce in the octagon."