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Cameroonian-French Francis Ngannou speaks during the Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) and Netflix 5X5 Professional MMA bound pre-fight press conference outside the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California on March 10, 2026. Rhonda Rousey will face Gina Carano on May 16, 2026. Both fighters will be returning after lengthy retirements. Ngannou will face Brazilian Philipe Lins in the undercard match. (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon / AFP via Getty Images) | AFP via Getty Images
Francis Ngannou may be competing under the Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) banner, but that doesn’t mean he’s best pals with promotional co-founder Jake Paul.
Indeed, Ngannou was offered the short-notice replacement role versus “The Problem Child” back in December 2025, but the former UFC Heavyweight champion declined the fight … for reasons unknown. Instead, Anthony Joshua stepped up to the plate, made a few million dollars, and shattered Paul’s jaw (watch here). Ngannou can probably relate to Paul on what it’s like to get knocked out by Joshua, and he’s since come around on the idea of facing Paul in the ring.
As for Paul? He’s open to it, in part because he believes he demonstrated himself the better boxer when comparing their respective “AJ” defeats. Paul had previously stated that he’s done competing at Heavyweight, but it sounds like he’s open to a final matchup there.
“I would say there’s a long list of opponents [for his next fight]. I think most recently Francis Ngannou was talking a lot of smack. He is an easy fight for me,” Paul told Sky Sports News. “I think he is a terrible boxer. I’ll go back up to heavyweight and knock him out like Joshua did, render him unconscious. He knows I lasted longer than him against Joshua. I didn’t get put out. I think maybe he wouldn’t do the fight because deep down he wouldn’t want to get embarrassed.”
At the moment, the immediate paths for both men are clear. Ngannou has to take out Philipe Lins at the MVP MMA event on Netflix in May, whereas Paul is still on the path to recovery from his broken jaw. There have been complications with Paul’s surgeries, so his exact timeline is unclear. If Ngannou is victorious against Lins, maybe the duo can compete towards the end of 2026?
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