UFC president Dana White seems to have snubbed Francis Ngannou on multiple levels after the Cameroonian retained his world heavyweight title last night.
The champ entered as an underdog against Ciryl Gane at UFC 270, and has been at odds with the promotion's boss White for a number of months over his contract, Mirror UK reports.
White had previously told Ngannou that he was free to leave the promotion, assuming he were to lose against Gane at their first pay-per-view of the year.
But when Ngannou defended his belt by beating the Frenchman over a five-round unanimous decision, White refused to put the belt around his waist, as is UFC tradition.
And he has also opted not to appear at the post-fight press conference, an almost unheard of occurrence following such a massive PPV event.
Ngannou has been angling for a better contract with the promotion since becoming champion, earning just $600,000 as a guarantee to defend his title.
And he admitted that he was unsure of where he stands with the promotion after White's latest snub.
"I don't know, you'd have to ask him," Ngannou told reporters at the post-fight press conference about White's refusal to present him with the belt or appear in front of the media.
"I didn't have anything to do with that, it was their decision and I want to ask about that.
"It's been a long time I've been wondering about my future in the company so I'm still in the same position.
"It's not simply about money; money is a part of it but it is also the terms of the contract, I don't feel like it's fair and I don't feel like I'm free.
"It's unfortunate I have to be in this position but I think everyone should have the right to claim what is best for them.
"We put a lot of work into this job and we take a lot on our bodies to make it happen so we should have a fair and square deal."
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