2 weeks Ago By Allan Binoy
Just a year after closing the chapter on in-ring competition, Demetrious ‘Mighty Mouse’ Johnson claims that there’s only one way he could be persuaded to turn back time. And it would take what the PFL is offering Jon Jones for a fight with Francis Ngannou.Jones, currently slated to fight interim champion Tom Aspinall next in the UFC was recently floated an offer of $50 million to consider taking on PFL champion Ngannou for what would essentially be the lineal heavyweight title of the world.
Jones and Ngannou were first teased to fight in 2021, when Ngannou was still in the UFC as its heavyweight champion while Jones had vacated the 205 lb title for a shot at becoming a two-division champion.The fight would never materialize since Jones would demand $30 million for the fight from the UFC, only to be seemingly surpassed by Ngannou demanding better pay for fighters all across the board.Now, as Jones refuses to dance the lamba again with yet another challenging opponent, Johnson asserts that should the same cheque be written in his name, he would actually consider putting on the gloves on more time.
“I just had this conversation on my podcast, we haven’t dropped it yet. If I was to come back and fight, it would have to be like $50 million,” Johnson said in a conversation with Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson. The only question is, who’s going to pay it? View this post on Instagram A post shared by Bear Degidio (@beardegidio)According to reports, Johnson had made $750,000 in his last fight under the ONE banner a year ago.
So, is this a gross overvaluation of his own celebrity? Besides, even the $50 million number for Jones sounds like an exaggeration and a desperate marketing ploy in the face of declining numbers.Interestingly, earlier today, UFC veteran Chael Sonnen even questioned paying that sum of money to Jones, claiming that the UFC GOAT has never been that much of a record-breaker in the community.“There has never been a time in his career that Jon has been sought after.
There were massive budgets that had to go in place when you had a Jon Jones fight...
And more times than not, they did not fill up the arena”, Sonnen noted.Besides, with fighter morale at an all-time low and many talented athletes like Patricio Freire leaving the organization in exchange for UFC’s perceived greener pastures, can the PFL even afford the gamble?PFL’s declining numbersBack in October, PFL’s co-founder Donn Davis made ambitious claims about outspending UFC’s $20 million event at the Las Vegas Sphere for PFL: Battle of the Giants. However, the financial reality of that decision proved disastrous.
With only 10,000 PPV buys at $49.99 each, the promotion made a mere $500,000 in revenue.Meanwhile, they paid their headliners exorbitant amounts, including $8 million to Francis Ngannou and $2 million to Renan Ferreira.
The result? A massive financial loss that PFL never anticipated.Dana White, the UFC President at the time, had openly criticized their reckless spending, suggesting that the promotion was drowning financially due to its poor decision-making.“The PFL should keep the UFC out of their mouth.
They can’t even deal with Power Slap.”Dana White goes OFF On PFL’s Donn Davis claiming bigger numbers than UFC. pic.
twitter.com/FhDC0s5a82— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) October 24, 2024The consequences of these financial missteps have been evident. Since acquiring Bellator in November 2023, PFL has struggled to book established fighters, with notable names like Corey Anderson unable to secure fights due to budget constraints.
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