Francis Ngannou's coach, Eric Nicksick, has revealed he was 'brought to tears' by his payday from the 37-year-old's recent bout with Tyson Fury.
Ngannou and Fury fought back in October, with the Gypsy King winning via split decision - despite being knocked down in round three.
There are hopes of a rematch between the pair, something neither man has ruled out.
And Nicksick was overwhelmed after receiving the biggest payday of his career, even if Ngannou was unable to come out on top.
Boxing news: Francis Ngannou narrowly lost to Tyson Fury back in October
GETTY
He told MMA Junkie: “It was the most money I’ve ever been paid by a fighter, it was unbelievable.
“It was more than I expected. Obviously, Francis has always taken great care of me, but it floored me.
“When I saw my Wells Fargo account that morning, it literally brought me to tears.
"That’s a true story. Literally brought me to tears, because he changed my life – not only from a professional standpoint but a monetary standpoint.
“It allowed me a lot of financial freedom to allow me to be able to enjoy my coaching, enjoy being a dad and a husband, and I get to take my kids to Park City this weekend, my daughter’s 16th birthday.
"[It] helped us buy a new car.
"There’s a lot of things with Francis moving over to boxing, and the way he takes care of his team.
"He loves every single one of us, and he shows it. He takes care of us, and I couldn’t thank him enough.
“Remember, as his head coach, the two title fights with Stipe [Miocic] and [one against Ciryl] Gane... He paid me more for the Tyson Fury fight as basically his assistant behind Dewey.
"I was behind Dewey, and I got paid way more than I did in the Gane and Stipe fights, and he was taking care of me on that as well – percentage-wise.
"If he wants to box, man, I’m all for it. All day long, brother.”
With Ngannou impressing against Fury, many would love to see the pair go at each other for a second time.
It's unclear if that will happen, especially with the Briton focused on his showdown with Oleksandr Usyk.
But Top Rank president Todd DuBoef believes Ngannou has 'earned' the chance to face Fury again.
He also thinks Fury will be out to prove a point following his underwhelming display last time out.
LATEST SPORTS NEWS:
Boxing news: Eric Nicksick was 'brought to tears' by payday from Francis Ngannou's fight with Tyson Fury
GETTY
"That's an earned ability to get the rematch. He earned that," said DuBoef.
"His performance dictated that [people think:] 'Woah, he has a chance.
"We never thought he had a chance' and in that situation I think absolutely.
"I think Tyson is regretful.
"He blamed himself. He thought he had an off night.
Boxing news: Tyson Fury is now preparing for his upcoming fight with Oleksandr Usyk
GETTY
"He said: 'I took it lightly. It was all on me.' Didn't point fingers, which was good.
"Ngannou outperformed anybody's expectation and as a result of that you have all the components to say, hey, I want to see this again and that creates and warrants a rematch."
