“It Was the Most Money I’ve Ever Been Paid by a Fighter” – Eric Nicksick Shuts Down Talks of Francis Ngannou ‘Fumbling the Bag’, Reveals Big Pay Day From Tyson Fury Fight

As of now, people are well aware that Francis Ngannou is not only fit for MMA but also for boxing. “The Battle of the Baddest” saw Ngannou locking horns against the heavyweight boxing champion, Tyson Fury. It was ‘the Predator’s debut in boxing and he showcased why people consider him one of the greats of the sport. Fury was left baffled by Ngannou’s dominance.

People were expecting complete dominance from Fury considering his feat, however, Ngannou came out of the syllabus for everyone. Despite losing the fight, Ngannou has asserted that he could take on the pros of boxing and is looking for a fight against Anthony Joshua or Deontay Wilder in the coming months. His Coach Eric Nicksick explains how the boxing fight changed everyone’s life.

Eric Nicksick tearfully reflects on Francis Ngannou’s boxing debut

Francis Ngannou’s boxing debut against Tyson Fury was a blockbuster event. The bets were against him, however, Ngannou’s dominance was such that he secured a potential knockdown against Tyson Fury. “Gypsy King” went a step ahead and claimed that Ngannou was one of his toughest opponents as well. So how did Ngannou, who was a debutant in professional boxing, go on to have one of the most dominant debuts? The answer is his coaches.

For his debut, Ngannou trained under the ͏tutelage of Mike ͏Tyson and coach Eric ͏Nicksick. This rigorous training appears to have paid off, as the Cameroonian-French fighter has left a significant ma͏rk on the world of boxing. Ngannou has made approximately 10 million dollars through his debut and ͏he has not forgotten his coaches.

Coach Eric Nicksick recently had a conversation with MMA Junkie, and during their discussion, Nicksick expressed that Ngannou exceeded his expectations by providing much more than he had anticipated – “I mean, it was the most money I’ve ever been paid by a fighter. It was unbelievable, you know? It was more than I expected. I wasn’t expecting, you know, and obviously, Francis has always taken great care of me.”

He further added, “It floored me when I saw my Wells Fargo, um, account that morning. And it literally brought me to tears. That’s a true story. It literally brought me to tears because he changed my life, you know? And not only from a professional standpoint but, uh, a monetary standpoint allowed me a lot of financial freedom to be able to enjoy my coaching, enjoy, um, being a dad and a husband.”

Nicksick’s claim directly refuted Dana White’s allegations that by choosing boxing and PFL above UFC, Ngannou has fumbled a big bag of money. However, let us understand how much truth White’s statement holds.

Was Ngannou’s decision the right thing to do?

Dana White claimed that Francis Ngannou “Fumbled the bag” with his decision. However, it must be noted that after departing from UFC, Ngannou was the hottest free agent in the market and was offered several lucrative deals. Ngannou chose PFL snubbing many others. At the time, people considered that Ngannou had made a bad deal. The former heavyweight champion an alleged $20 million offer from ONE, as well as a historic financial proposal from the UFC.

Despite ultimately signing with the PFL under innovative terms, skeptics were questioning whether Ngannou had made the right decision. His agreement not only granted him equity ownership in PFL Africa, a regional league similar to PFL Europe set to launch in 2025 but also provided him the opportunity to participate in PFLE’s MMA PPV events. Additionally, he retained the option to compete in professional boxing through a separate contract.

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In his boxing debut, Ngannou much more than he would have received from a single fight from MMA. Nicksick’s revelations have undermined White’s claim that Ngannou’s opportunity cost was much higher after he left the UFC.

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