Francis Ngannou: MMA fighters 'don't have the balls' for free agency

Free agency may look glamorous, but there's a lot more to it, says former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou.

Fighting out his contract with the UFC and stepping into free agency has been a financial success for Ngannou (18-3). From signing a lucrative contract with the PFL, to getting mega fights with boxing stars Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, to now fighting on the first-ever MMA card on Netflix, Ngannou has had quite the run in this latest chapter of his fighting career. But none of this was promised the day he walked away from the UFC. Ngannou had to bet on himself and embrace the unknown – something he thinks very few UFC fighters are willing to do.

"There's always the opportunity," Ngannou told ESPN. "I think you just have to be around and be free, you know. Make sure you're in the position to catch that opportunity when it comes, because if you get yourself stuck in a contract because you're afraid of being alone out there, then when the opportunity comes, you might be stuck in some contract, and then you cannot take that opportunity. That's what happened to a lot of fighters. They are just so scared of being free, being without promotion, without a promoter, or something that they can do. They will sign up for everything just to be in the promotion, and then the day that the opportunity, the real opportunity, comes around, they are not there."

Ngannou returns to MMA action on May 16 on MVP's first-ever MMA card, which will stream live on Netflix from the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif. "The Predator" takes on former UFC, PFL, Bellator veteran Philipe Lins. Ngannou feels this spot and payday could've been available for many other big MMA names, but due to their standing with the UFC, those names just didn't have the possibility. "This fight, this could have been an opportunity for so many people, but they are all locked somewhere in the contract, that they are not very happy about it, that are not helping them, but they don't have the balls to stand on their own and claim that freedom," Ngannou explained. "We all talk about free agency, but it's like it's something that also demands you to be strong. You're going to be out there on your own without having any idea about your future, not knowing if you're going to fight, have a short notice in 10 days, or if you're going to fight and go a year back without fighting. You don't know. Just have to be ready. Get yourself prepared for the opportunity."