Could Francis Ngannou really make the switch from UFC to boxing?

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Two-time world heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury has continued to call out UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, with aspirations for a crossover fight between the pair to be held sometime next year. Although Fury has been locked in negotiations over his next boxing fight with British heavyweight rival Dillian Whyte, the “Gypsy King” has maintained that he is going to “fight Francis Ngannou in Las Vegas next year”.

SOURCE: Photo

Following the recent high-profile British boxing bout between Kell Brook and Amir Khan, Chris Eubank Jr. said that this was a golden era for the sport in the UK. Further up the weight divisions, Tyson Fury remains the main man and the face of heavyweight boxing. It could be argued that it’s equally as golden a period for mixed martial arts (MMA) too, with Francis Ngannou the pin-up for UFC fans at the heavyweight division. The fight sports boom happening right now is something akin to the poker boom of the early 2000s, which became a global phenomenon, laying the foundations for the industry and its plethora of game variations and crossovers. With fight sports promoters desperate to ride the crest of this current wave, a crossover bout between Fury and Ngannou makes more sense the more you think about it.

Ngannou’s UFC future remains up in the air

Ngannou, who comfortably defeated Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 and remains in a league of his own in the heavyweight UFC ranks, is still yet to agree terms on a new contract with the organization. Ngannou has been vocal in his desire for any new deal to include terms that would enable him to partake in a boxing fight, much like the one that enabled UFC icon Conor McGregor to lock horns with pound-for-pound great Floyd Mayweather Jr. back in 2017. Ngannou recently admitted that it was his “dream since [he] was a kid” to become a professional boxer.

Ngannou’s manager, Marquel Martin, believes the Cameroonian could pose a serious threat to Fury if he was given the time to “put together six to 12 months on strictly boxing”. After all, Ngannou is regarded as the world’s hardest-hitting puncher. His brute force has long been a box-office attraction in the UFC, given that 12 of his 17 wins have come by way of knockout. In 2017, at the UFC Performance Institute, Ngannou posted a punch at a force of 129,161 units, which comfortably overtook the record once held by kickboxer Tyrone Spong. UFC’s Dana White described his punch power as akin to a “12lb sledgehammer swung full force from overhead”.

Fury likes the challenge of overcoming ferocious hitters

Fury is no stranger to fighting big hitters. His most recent trilogy with the “Bronze Bomber” Deontay Wilder enchanted the boxing world for years on end. Wilder’s knockout capabilities meant that Fury was always on a knife-edge, but the Manchester-born star’s underlying boxing qualities consistently came to the fore in all three bouts. Fury would be hoping to put on a similar show to stifle Ngannou. Although the Cameroonian may have the ability to end a fight in one punch, this one-dimensional approach is something that didn’t serve Wilder so well in the ring.

Fury is confident that a crossover bout between Ngannou and he would smash all pay-per-view records Stateside. Fury described the duel as “two heavyweight champions going head-to-head”. He could well be right, particularly if fight fans believe Ngannou genuinely has a shot at demonstrating his ferocious hand power in the boxing ring instead of the octagon.

For the time being, Fury must take care of business elsewhere. His fight with Dillian Whyte on April 23 at London’s Wembley Stadium has finally been confirmed, with Whyte signing the terms of the contract at the 11^th hour. Victory over Whyte would secure his WBC belt and set Fury up for a tilt at the winner of the rematch between Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk to become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.

Fury’s status as the king of heavyweight boxing would be at its absolute peak heading into negotiations with Ngannou for a dust-up in early 2023. Of course, it’s entirely possible that Ngannou may not have signed a new contract with UFC during this time. In which case, he would be free to negotiate any kind of fight with Fury on his own terms.