After Francis Ngannou beat Philipe Lins at the first MVP MMA event last week, a fight with Jon Jones suddenly seemed like a real possibility. However, the former UFC two-division champion quickly realised that he was still bound by an exclusive contract with Dana White’s promotion, and getting out of that would be a difficult prospect. Still, Tyron Woodley has revealed that Jones texted him about ways to make a fight with Francis Ngannou happen, and apparently, he provided ‘Bones’ a potential solution inspired by Conor McGregor.

“Conor McGregor boxed Floyd Mayweather,” Tyron Woodley said in an interview with NewBettingSites.uk. “My lawyer is the lawyer that actually gave Audie Attar and Conor the play and the manoeuvre to do it through the Ali Act. His name is Sam Spira. He doesn’t get a lot of credit for it. If Jon wanted to fight Francis Ngannou, there is a legal way where he can do it. It’s not going to be a cakewalk, but have the legal team deal with it. Jon texted me afterwards, because Jon knows me. He knows if I say something, I’m not going to be sugarcoating it. 

“As I was saying it on air, my lawyer was watching it, so he sent me a text message of exactly the injunction he would have to do, how he would have to file it, and the process. ‘It’s going to be a battle, but this is the way you can do it.’ Jon asked me himself, he said, ‘Tyron, send me that lawyer’s number that knows that play.’ I said, ‘fine’ and I forwarded him my lawyer’s info. I would say he has the information he needs, if he legally wants to pursue that. But he is doing well business-wise. He’s got a lot of things keeping him busy. So if he wants to fight, he’s got the information to do it. The ball’s in his court.”

The McGregor-Mayweather precedent is instructive. At the time of that 2017 bout, McGregor was under an exclusive contract with the UFC that restricted him from competing elsewhere. Dana White was initially reluctant about the idea, as it would have required allowing McGregor to compete outside the promotion, making the situation complicated. But the former UFC two-division champion eventually found a solution.

Before facing Mayweather, the Irishman successfully obtained a boxing license in California, officially making him a sanctioned professional boxer. This brought him under the jurisdiction of the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act, making the fight sanctionable as a professional boxing match. The UFC ultimately co-promoted the event rather than fight the arrangement in court.

With that in mind, some believe Jon Jones could attempt a similar route to secure a fight against Francis Ngannou. However, the Muhammad Ali Act likely wouldn’t be applicable in the case of an MMA fight between the two heavyweight greats. Plus, there are other legal complications as well when it comes to Jones’ existing UFC contract.

Now, amid growing speculation surrounding a potential ‘Bones’ vs. ‘Predator’ superfight, one of Jones’ former rivals believes he is deliberately avoiding the matchup.

Chael Sonnen believes Jon Jones is dodging the Francis Ngannou fight

Though Jon Jones settled his rivalry with Chael Sonnen by securing a first-round TKO win at UFC 159, the tension between the two remains alive. Speaking about Jones’ potential superfight with Francis Ngannou, Sonnen speculated that ‘Bones’ is avoiding the matchup with the Cameroonian-French powerhouse. He even went as far as claiming that Ngannou would knock Jones out.

“Well, when Jon Jones says show the money, same with anyone else when they say it, they mean I don’t want to fight,” Sonnen said. “Just because he doesn’t want to fight him doesn’t mean he won’t fight him. Jon Jones is a competitor, and if you back him into a corner, he is going to come out fighting. 

“Look, I like the speed of Jones, I like the length of Jon Jones, I don’t believe Jon Jones is going to circle in front of the big man. I think he’s going to start picking him apart and he’s got the reach to do it. I also did see that one wrestling exchange and if Jones can get in on that single he could likely drag him down. However, if the big man the champion in Ngannou, can stuff Jones’ takedowns, Francis will knock him out.”

Whether Jon Jones pursues the legal route Tyron Woodley has laid out remains to be seen. Dana White co-promoting an event with MVP is a remote prospect given the competitive dynamic, but with the right financial incentive and enough public appetite, stranger things have happened in combat sports.