UFC President Dana White calls Francis Ngannou a ‘bad man’ while revealing past altercation

Dana White thrashes the former UFC heavyweight champion.

Dana White has offered his most detailed account yet of the turbulent relationship between him and former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou.

Speaking on the Flagrant podcast, the UFC President walked through multiple incidents that, in his words, showed “who this guy really f*ck*ng is,” including a moment when Ngannou allegedly grabbed him by the shirt inside UFC headquarters.

White has long insisted that Ngannou’s public image doesn’t match the man the UFC dealt with behind the scenes. And while fans often assumed the tension was rooted in business disagreements, White made it clear he believes the problems ran far deeper than money or contract structure.

Dana White alleges physical altercations

According to White, the most jarring moment came shortly after an Ngannou win when the heavyweight stopped by the UFC offices. Upset over not receiving a $50,000 post-fight bonus, Ngannou confronted White directly.

“He was pissed off he didn’t get a $50,000 in his last fight,” White said. “

“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. I said, ‘Dude, get your f*cking hands off me.’”

White claims the outburst wasn’t an isolated one. He alleges Ngannou also clashed physically with UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell during a separate disagreement.

“When Hunter started to walk away, Francis grabbed him by the f*cki*ng back of his collar and pulled him back and said, ‘We’re not done talking yet,’” White said.

“This guy’s not a good fcking guy. He’s a bad guy.”

White says those moments changed the way he viewed Ngannou permanently, describing a clear shift from the inspirational figure MMA fans embraced to someone he found increasingly difficult to deal with.

Timeline of friction: Bonus disputes, Miocic fight demands and contract collapse

White also traced his issues with Ngannou back to 2018, when the then-surging contender was preparing to face Stipe Miocic for the heavyweight title. White claims Ngannou had already begun making demands based on the belief that he would win.

“He grabs me and says, ‘Let me tell you what’s going to happen… you’re going to book me a private plane to Paris,’” White recalled. “I laughed and said ‘oh yeah.’ He said, ‘I’m not joking.’”

Miocic went on to dominate Ngannou in a lopsided fight. White said the loss “ended that whole conversation,” adding, “I should have f*cking cut him that day.”

The final breaking point arrived years later, after Ngannou defended the title against Ciryl Gane and entered negotiations seeking improved pay, boxing rights, and broader contractual freedoms. White ultimately let him walk, saying he didn’t regret it.

“Francis Ngannou is a bad guy,” White said. “He plays the whole ‘I don’t understand the language’… There’s no f*cking language barrier with this guy.”

Ngannou has since moved on to the PFL and Saudi Arabia’s boxing circuit, pursuing a crossover fight with Jon Jones, a matchup White says he has no interest in entertaining.

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