Francis Ngannou has revealed he is looking forward to fighting Ciryl Gane in 2022, but admits it's not on the same level as a fight with Jon Jones.
The Cameroonian, 35, was famously called out for a mega bout by Bones after the MMA star defeated Stipe Miocic at UFC 260 on March 27.
UFC president Dana White has shown interest in a high-profile bout between the two but wage demands and Jones' ongoing legal troubles have led to complications behind the scenes.
Instead, Ngannou hopes to come through a January 22 mandatory defence of his newly-acquired belt against Gane and then battle Jones, who faces an uncertain future after he was arrested for domestic violence and tampering with a vehicle in Las Vegas
The 31-year-old Bon Gamin demolished Derrick Lewis in August to grab the vacant UFC interim heavyweight title and set up an undisputed decider with Ngannou.
When asked if the thought of fighting Gane excites him more than potentially facing Jones, Ngannou replied via MMA Fighting: “Not particularly. But it’s a good fight. You have to be aware of the danger of any fight, so it’s a fight, he’s a good opponent, but not on the level of a Jon Jones fight for example if that’s what you’re asking. It’s not the same thing."
Following his most recent victory, Ngannou grabbed the mic and called out Jones, who is widely considered the best pound-for-pound MMA fighter of all time.
Jones, who has not fought for over a year after a narrow win over Dominick Reyes, replied on Twitter, warning Ngannou to be careful what he wished for.
The Albuquerque native wrote: "Oh you know what’s inside of me you’ve never seen me quit.
"Pray you knock me out because if you don’t I’m going to break you, and that’s a promise.
"Honestly I really respect you and your story. I really don’t feel the need to have to crush you in a verbal battle to do what I’ve done to everyone since 2011.
"I'm just telling you now if you want to start this Internet talk, be sure to keep up. Most people that talk s--- with me go quiet after a while...
"Everyone’s going to be the first to smash Jon Jones, very popular theme."
But Ngannou admits he is unsure if the fight will ever take place given Jones' latest run-in with the law.
“At this point, I don’t know much about what will happen in the future,” Ngannou said.
“I don’t stress about that. What will happen will happen. I wish that fight will happen, but I’m not sure about it anymore. It will be okay.
“There are so many good fights out there if everything goes right, there’s so many fights that you can do and would be a good fight, so let everything go.”
This article will be updated.
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