UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou has partnered with Cash App to receive half of his UFC 270 pay in Bitcoin. As part of the promotion, he will also be giving away $300,000 in Bitcoin to fans who follow @CashApp on Twitter and comment on Ngannou’s tweet.
The Champion is guaranteed to receive $750,000 in his January 20th showdown against undefeated Interim Champion Ciryl Gane. Ngannou released a statement regarding the choice, “After learning more and more about Bitcoin, I truly believe it is the future of money,†He continued, “Bitcoin has the ability to empower people all over the world and that’s why I’m excited to partner with Cash App to give some of my fans the opportunity to own some Bitcoin of their own.â€
Ngannou has spoken out against fighter pay in the past, with unsuccessful negotiations leading to Ciryl Gane and Derrick Lewis fighting for an Interim Title just 5 months after Ngannou last defended his championship. As the upcoming fight is the last on his contract, he has stated that he has his eye on a move into boxing, as he refuses to fight for $500K-$600K.
“I will not fight for $500,000-$600,000 anymore. It’s over. I took this fight for personal reasons, because I want to make sure that regardless of [if] it’s fair, I can make my case that I have completed the fights.”
“100 percent [I need to box],” Ngannou said. “We’ve been having discussions for years. It seems like they are OK with it. Let’s be honest, I do believe that whatever you are doing — whatever the event is — if the UFC is involved, it’s just going to make it bigger. There is no question. So, yes, if I box, I would like the UFC to be on-board.
His move to boxing seems to be likely, as he’s even gotten into a back-and-forth with Heavyweight Boxing Champion Tyson Fury.
Ngannou is being creative with his money from this paycheck, seeming to play the long game in his investment. Only time will tell where his next purse will come from and what he’ll do with it.
I believe bitcoin can empower people everywhere. So I’m excited to partner w/ @CashApp to take half my #UFC270 purse in bitcoin. I want to make bitcoin more accessible to my fans, so I’m giving out $300K in bitcoin! Follow @CashApp + drop your $cashtag w/ #PaidInBitcoin pic.twitter.com/8JEvJ1UYu1
— Francis Ngannou (@francis_ngannou) January 18, 2022
