Francis Ngannou addressed his departure from PFL and whether he wants to remain with the PFL Africa brand, having joined as an equity-partner in the project when he first signed on as a fighter in 2023. 

Ngannou will be returning to MMA on the May 16 MVP card headlined by Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano, having fought just the once during his time with PFL before his departure was announced this year. The former UFC Heavyweight Champion had defeated Renan Ferreira for the PFL Super Fights Heavyweight Championship in February 2024 as well as helping to establish the PFL Africa brand. 

However, he told Ariel Helwani that he had actually been contracted for one more fight and had been hoping to make it happen. He also confirmed that the decision had not been his to leave, “We parted ways in January… That was their decision to part ways, not mine.”

He said it’s not something he was looking to get emotional over and just sought to move on, though he said he would like to remain with PFL Africa if that remains an option.

“Obviously I would like to be involved. My goal with PFL Africa was to bring the sport to the continent, launch that and give that opportunity to people in the continent. It was something separate from my promotional agreement. So I think if there is a way to keep that on, I would still be a part of it. Because for me, it’s a personal project,” he said.

Jon Jones may not be fighting on the UFC White House card in June but his very own promotion is making headway in Washington DC, having received its promoting license. 

Jones was announced as a co-owner of Dirty Boxing Championship in March last year, joining fellow veteran Mike Perry and his manager Malki Kawa in doing so. He mainly serves an ambassadorial role much in the same way he will for Russia’s IBA Bareknuckle Boxing going forward, and was front and center for the promotion’s newest update regarding its promoting license in DC. 

“BREAKING: DBX is officially a licensed promoter in DC!” The announcement read, alongside a picture of Jones draped in the US flag in front of the White House.

The announcement was timed well considering the ongoing dispute between Jones and UFC regarding his status with the promotion and supposed negotiations for the Freedom 250 card at the White House in June. Jones had said prior to the full card being announced that he was in negotiations to renege on his 2025 retirement, and entered the USADA testing pool (two tests conducted in 2026 thus far). 

The card was announced, Jones was nowhere to be found, and Dana White dismissed any notion he was being considered. Jones has since pushed back on that, claiming that not only were there active negotiations but he was lowballed, believing any potential fight with Alex Pereira – who will be fighting on the card against Ciryl Gane – to be worth more than the $15 million he said they tabled. 

He added that if the sentiment was truly that he was done, then he would like to be released from his contract. White has maintained his version of events, stopping just short of calling Jones a liar during Saturday’s press conference following Fight Night 271.

The card for WrestleMania 42 is starting to take shape, and with 12 matches being announced for the show as of Monday, there are limited spots left for the two-night event. One star who has yet to find himself a match at WrestleMania is The Miz, and during a recent interview with Esteban Ramirez, “The A-lister” claimed that it’s never been more difficult to get booked in a match on “The Grandest Stage Of Them All.”

“I’ve been working as harder than ever to literally try to be on the card of WrestleMania 42, and the reason being is there are so many superstars, so many new and upcoming superstars that have just been blowing the roof off the place. Oba Femi, like it is not supposed to happen where a person walks into a WWE arena, whether it’s ‘Raw’ or ‘SmackDown,’ and everyone’s chanting your name right off the bat. That just doesn’t happen. It takes time to develop, but he’s developed so quickly and now he’s going up against Brock Lesnar and everyone’s excited about it. Everyone’s talking about it.”

Over the past few weeks, The Miz has been involved in segments with American artist Jelly Roll and interacted backstage with stars such as Kit Wilson and Danhausen, but it remains to be seen if current direction leads to a WrestleMania match. Last night, four matches were added to the card on “WWE Raw,” including Seth Rollins versus GUNTHER, Finn Balor versus Dominik Mysterio, a Ladder Match for Penta’s Intercontinental Title, and a Fatal Four-Way Match for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships, which are currently held by Nia Jax and Lash Legend.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Esteban Ramirez” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

UFC announced during Fight Night 271 that Demetrious Johnson would be inducted into the Hall of Fame as part of the Modern Wing this year. 

Johnson was in attendance for Fight Night 271 on Saturday, headlined by Israel Adesanya versus Joe Pyfer at middleweight, and was shown during the event alongside his family as his induction was announced. 

“Taking his rightful place. Mighty Mouse becomes the newest athlete to join the UFC Hall of Fame,” the announcement read via X. 

TAKING HIS RIGHTFUL PLACE 🏆@MightyMouse becomes the newest athlete to join the UFC Hall of Fame! pic.twitter.com/bRkwiW31fS

— UFC (@ufc) March 29, 2026

Johnson inaugurated the UFC Flyweight Championship in 2012, reigning for 2142 days until 2018 and setting a record for longest reign in the division, including 12 fights with the title on the line. He left UFC after being traded to ONE for Ben Askren in 2018, going on to win the ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix and then the Flyweight Championship before retiring in 2024, becoming the first inductee into ONE’s Hall of Fame. 

“Feels good. It’s been a long time coming… It’s about damn time,” Johnson said about his induction in a video posted to X. 

“Demetrious Johnson is the greatest flyweight of all-time,” said UFC President Dana White. “Demetrious was a great champion who had one of the most incredible careers in MMA, and his streak of 11 consecutive title defenses is one of the most remarkable records we’ve ever seen in professional sports. It will be an honor to induct him into the UFC Hall of Fame this summer.”

Johnson will be the 18th member of the Modern Wing, dedicated to fighters who turned professional after November 17, 2000. He joins the fight between Joanna Jedrzejczyk versus Weili Zhang at UFC 248 in 2020 in the UFC Hall of Fame Class of 2026, with that being the first women’s fight to receive the honor.