Jake Paul slammed UFC President Dana White for threatening to sue Francis Ngannou’s team before his title fight and not handing him the belt when he won, claiming it was “pure disrespect.”
Francis Ngannou pulled off an impressive feat at UFC 270.
Not only did he successfully defend his heavyweight title against Cyril Gane with some unexpected wrestling skills, but he also did it with a torn MCL and a damaged ACL.
However, a big talking point of the night was that the UFC reportedly threatened to sue his team for talking with Jake Paul’s agent. Dana White also didn’t put the belt around his waist when he won or turn up to the post-fight press conference.
Jake Paul, who has been at odds with White for more than a year, shared his thoughts on the situation. He described it as “pure disrespect” to Ngannou and the sport and vowed to keep exposing the company’s antics.
Paul roasted White for threatening to sue Ngannou’s team after talking to his agent. “Dana is too busy sending out lawsuit threats to his heavyweight champions minutes before they enter the cage to fight another man,” he said.
He also revealed that his agent received the same legal threat. “He actually sent my partner the same thing at 9 pm that night when Dana’s supposedly being president at his big PPV event for a public company.”
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Then, Paul took a swipe at the UFC President for not putting the belt around Ngannou’s waist like he usually would after a title fight, claiming it was a disrespectful act. He also used an analogy to illustrate his point.
“Imagine if Adam Silver sent a lawsuit to Lebron James minutes before he took the floor for the NBA Finals, then refused to present him with the NBA championship trophy after he won. It’s pure disrespect to the athlete and the sport.”
White played down the incident during a Q&A on January 26, saying: “I wasn’t out there for the main event. I actually walked out of the arena right after the co-main event because there was stuff going on backstage that I was dealing with.
He also claimed that anybody who thinks he was intentionally being disrespectful towards Ngannou is an “idiot,” explaining that he spoke to him and shook his hand multiple times in the lead-up to the event.
However, Paul isn’t convinced. Instead, he promised to ramp up his efforts to tackle the company. “The UFC can and should do better given the control it has exerted over MMA fighters. I will be working to expose his constant exploitative practices.”