Francis Ngannou gifts performance bonus to Philipe Lins

Francis Ngannou has gifted a $100k performance bonus to the opponent Philipe Lins, whom he stopped in the first round of MVP MMA’s fight.

Ngannou faced Brazilian Lins on the undercard of Ronda Rousey’s comeback fight against Gina Carano.

Rousey submitted fellow icon Carano in 17 seconds of her mixed martial arts comeback fight.

Ngannou did not win the contest easily, but still, he finished the job in the first round, knocking out Lins with a huge left hook.

Ngannou, 39, refused to further add any shot on the downed 41-year-old, and it was not limited to the mercy; he showed generosity as well.

At the post-fight press conference for the event, Ngannou said: “I mean, I think... Even though I believe that he was promoted [fairly well], I think that he’s been underestimated.

“I saw people, a lot of people, counted him out. And the guy that I faced tonight... of course I won, but he was tough. He could eat some punch[es].

“I think he has an opening, he has a spot. If he has a fight [with] some other guy, he can make a good statement.

“By the way, he’s the guy... I think he’s the guy that deserved the performance of the night [bonus], so maybe we should give the performance of the night to Philipe Lins.”

Francis Ngannou’s gesture was appreciated by many and when the footage of the former UFC champion’s speech was shared on Instagram by Uncrowned, Lins wrote in the comments: “Thank you Francis.”

According to Uncrowned, Ngannou earned $1.5m for fighting Lins – a former PFL champion – who reportedly earned $100,000. The publication learned these figures from the California State Athletic Commission.

So, with Cameroonian’s apparent monetary gift, Lin’s pay might have doubled.