It’ll be his first fight back since October 2024.The event will also be notable as the first MMA card to stream on Netflix. As someone quick to take the opportunity, Ngannou believes plenty of other fighters should have done the same.Francis Ngannou calls on UFC fighters to take control of their careersPhoto by Cooper Neill/Getty ImagesNgannou is one of several former UFC fighters set to compete at the Inglewood Intuit Dome on May 16. Nate Diaz is scheduled to face Mike Perry, while Junior dos Santos and Muhammad Mokaev are also on the card, which will be headlined by Ronda Rousey vs Gina Carano.During a recent press conference in New York, Diaz described the event as one made up of ‘free’ fighters – a point that Ngannou strongly agreed with.

And in an interview with ESPN, Ngannou elaborated on why he believes more fighters should consider free agency after seeing how this Netflix event has come together.“There’s always the opportunity,” Ngannou said. “I think you just have to be around and be free. Make sure you’re in the position to catch that opportunity when it comes.

If you get yourself stuck in a contract because you’re afraid of being alone out there, when the opportunity comes, you might be stuck in some contract.“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.“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, that (is) not helping them,” he continued.

“But they don’t have the balls to stand on their own and claim that freedom.“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.”Ngannou almost beat Tyson Fury in his professional boxing debut before coming up short against another former world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua upon his return.The Cameroonian star still holds boxing ambitions but is currently focused on MMA as he prepares for his upcoming return against Philipe Lins at Netflix 1.Read more:Islam Makhachev hints at earlier UFC return, contradicting Dana WhiteArman Tsarukyan hints at following Ronda Rousey’s career pathWhy Ilia Topuria says Conor McGregor vs. Max Holloway is impossible to call