here’s my prediction:
francis goes to boxing, loses, but makes a bunch of money in his one fight against a name opponents.
ufc sues for breach of contract. spoiler alert, the champions clause is not going to be ruled invalid. its going to be litigated in nevada, a state that very much enjoys ufcs business, and its terms will be construed so as to avoid any problems that come from requiring the champ to fight in perpetuity. anyway, the clause is meant to protect the ufc from exactly what nggano is doing right now, which is leveraging his prominence as ufc champion to procure opportunities outside the cage at the expense of the ufcs brand. its valid, period.
nggano will end up paying restitution for his breach, in an amount that will greatly dampen the sweetness of his boxing payday. remember, the only reason anyone cares about nggano in the boxing ring is because he was promoted as ufc champion. ufc invested in him, built him up, and he ultimately backstabbed them because he’s convinced himself the opposite is true (as have many of you).
in the end, nggano loses his boxing match, and likely discovers that his drawing power is not as great as he thought it was. he spends away what remains of his payday, and ends up taking fights for less than he is currently paid. he ends up broke, bitter, and probably blaming his management for the demise of his career.
you heard it here first.
