It has been several years since former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou left the promotion on bad terms, but now UFC CEO Dana White his sharing his side of what may have led to the star leaving a win at UFC 270.
“So when you’re an athlete that’s signed by the UFC, you get full access to the Performance Institute, you can eat there for free, everything’s free and do all this stuff,” White explained on the Flagrant podcast. “This guy was f*cking living there. He had just fought and he comes up to my office, he’s in the hallway hanging out and I said ‘come on in, what’s going on?’
“He was pissed off he didn’t get a $50,000 in his last fight, that he didn’t get the bonus of the night. I said Francis you didn’t get it for this, that [reason] and he’s in my office and he’s arguing with me. I’m like this guy got this, this guy got that and this is why. The conversation’s over, and I’m starting to leave, and he grabs me by my shirt and pushes me back in my office and I said ‘dude, get your f*cking hands off me.’ I could see in this guy’s face and in his eyes and the way he’s acting who this guy really f*cking is.”
According to White, UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell, had a similar experience with Francis Ngannou.
“My guy Hunter [Campbell], they were talking about something, it might have even been that same thing [about the bonus],” White said. “And when Hunter started to walk away, Francis grabbed him by the f*cking back of his collar and f*cking pulled him back and said ‘we’re not done talking yet.’ This guy’s not a good f*cking guy. He’s a bad guy.”
Adding fuel to the fire, Ant Evans, a former UFC employee who has been vocal against White and the UFC in recent years, posted on social media that he believes Dana White in this instance.
“I hadn’t heard this story before; I believe it 100%.
“Francis was a terror at the UFC office when I worked there. He’d show up over and over, walk around the offices, standing over people’s desks and making staff very uncomfortable.
“Now, some of it was he is a huge man from a different culture speaking English as a (third?) language. And there is such a thing as being pro-active.
“And there’s also bullying.
“He struck me as a bully.”
I hadn’t heard this story before; I believe it 100%.
Francis was a terror at the UFC office when I worked there. He’d show up over and over, walk around the offices, standing over people’s desks and making staff very uncomfortable.
Now, some of it was he is a huge man from a… https://t.co/cWvlazMvAO
— Ant Evans (@AntEvansMMA) November 18, 2025
After leaving the UFC, Ngannou signed with the Professional Fighters League but would not make his debut before taking two massive boxing bouts against Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.
After experiencing defeats in both outings, Francis Ngannou made his PFL debut with a first-round win over Renan Ferreira in 2024. He has not fought at all in 2025.
“Francis Ngannou is a bad guy,” Dana White said. “He’s not a good guy. He plays the whole ‘I don’t understand the language’ and tries to come off that he’s a f*cking nice guy. People go ‘oh it’s the language barrier probably.’ There’s no f*cking language barrier with this guy. He’s a bad guy.
“Now he’s over and he’s done a deal with PFL and Saudi Arabia and now he’s asking to fight, ‘me and Jon Jones need to fight.’ I’m sure they wish they never f*cking signed him. I don’t have to hear one word from any of those guys over there to know because I know. I’ve dealt with him and I know who he really is.”
