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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Harry Davies

Francis Ngannou would rather fight Tyson Fury than Jon Jones after UFC 270

Francis Ngannou admits he would rather box heavyweight champion Tyson Fury next and not face UFC star Jon Jones.

Ngannou makes the first defence of his UFC heavyweight title this weekend against interim titleholder Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 in California.

Talks of 'The Predator' crossing over to boxing have come after he refused to sign a new UFC deal and demanded a clause that would allow him to box.

Ngannou was linked to fight Jones after winning the heavyweight title last March, but UFC boss Dana White said the former light heavyweight champion demanded $30 million for the fight.

And Ngannou admitted uncertainty over Jones' fighting future makes him prefer a fight with Fury next.

"If you give me the two options, I would choose fighting Tyson Fury," Ngannou told Mirror Fighting.

"After fighting Stipe [Miocic], the Jon Jones fight was on the table, but it seems like nobody really cares about it, so I don't know.

"Also, we don't even know what is the position of Jon Jones right now. I'm not planning my life based on that. I will plan my life based on the facts."

Francis Ngannou wants to face Tyson Fury next (Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Jones - who is widely regarded as one of the best MMA fighters ever - has not fought in two years due to contractual disagreements with the UFC.

'Bones' recently weighed in on Ngannou's fight with Gane by stating he is "excited" to learn about both fighters.

"Really have no clue who’s going to win, I’m just excited to watch the fight. Going to learn so much about the both of them no matter how it goes down," he wrote.

Jones holds the record for being the youngest champion in UFC history and has vowed to become a two-division champion this year.

Should Francis Ngannou fight Tyson Fury next? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

Whilst talking at the UFC 270 media day, Ngannou said his chances of facing Fury are "eight or nine" out of 10.

Fury has caught wind of Ngannou's contractual problems and labelled a potential fight between the two heavyweights as a "clash of the titans".

'The Gypsy King' has been called to defend his WBC heavyweight title against Dillian Whyte next, but could face Oleksandr Usyk in an undisputed clash instead.

Ngannou countered an offer from Fury to box in 4oz MMA gloves by challenging him to an MMA fight with 12oz boxing gloves.

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