Dana White admits he wanted Francis Ngannou to lose at UFC 270 amid bitter feud

UFC president Dana White has publicly admitted he wanted Francis Ngannou to lose his heavyweight title defence against Ciryl Gane at UFC 270, the latest flashpoint in a feud between the two men that shows no sign of cooling.

“Damn right I wanted Ngannou to lose,” White said during an interview with Big Boy, when asked to name the last fighter he had actively rooted against. “Guy that I wanted to lose? It would have to be Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane.”

Ngannou did not oblige. “The Predator” ground out a decision victory over Gane at UFC 270 in January 2022, and White’s absence from the cage during the post-fight belt ceremony — breaking with the promotion’s usual custom — became one of the more telling images of their deteriorating relationship. White dismissed the moment at the time, saying he had something to deal with backstage.

The tensions between the two had been building long before that night. Ngannou and the UFC had clashed repeatedly over contract terms, and when Ngannou fought out the final bout of his deal, the animosity was barely concealed. He underwent knee surgery after the Gane fight, waited out his contract, and parted ways with the promotion in 2023.

White reignited the dispute this week by calling Ngannou “a bad guy” and ruling out any future collaboration, a statement that drew a public response from Ngannou himself.

White also used the interview to revisit his long-running contempt for former light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz, suggesting Ngannou has now reached a similar level of personal dislike. “We did your podcast, and I said the guy is one of the dumbest people ever, and now it’s everywhere,” White said of Ortiz. “There’s full Instagram accounts based on it. People are actually making money off how stupid this guy is now.”

Whether the Ngannou feud escalates further or simply continues to simmer in public exchanges remains to be seen, but White’s latest comments make clear he has no interest in letting it go.