Irish megastar Conor McGregor was thoroughly entertained by Francis Ngannou’s pro boxing debut against Tyson Fury.
Emanating from Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, ‘The Predator’ made his first appearance inside the squared circle a memorable one, going toe-to-toe with perhaps the greatest fighter in the sport today, Tyson Fury. Through 10-rounds of action, Ngannou routinely held his own and stifled Fury’s offense for much of the 30-minute scrap.
The biggest highlight of the night came in the third round when Ngannou landed a counter left hand that caught ‘The Gypsy King’ off guard and sent him crashing to the canvas.
#FuryvsNgannou Ngannou Knock Down Fury pic.twitter.com/58cgZ3UVVk
— Dimitrios Chontas (@jimhontas) October 28, 2023
“Lovely shot, it caught him in the back of the head,” McGregor said of Ngannou’s third round knockdown in an interview with TNT Sports. “More off balance as well, but fair play to Tyson. He is a tough man as well. Stong chin. And Jesus, Ngannou’s a poweful boy as well. Tyson couldn’t hold him. Tyson could not hold him. He kept; he was just missing with that back hand. Great fight. Great to watch. Heavyweight boxing is exciting!
“Tyson couldn’t hurt him. Tyson could not hurt him. He was just missing with that back hand. Great fight! Great to watch! Heavyweight boxing is exciting, especially from the ringside. … It’s a crazy game!”
By the time the bell rang for the tenth and final time, Francis Ngannou was sitting pretty as the favorite to come out on top via the live odds. However, two of the three judges did not see it that way, scoring the fight in favor of Tyson Fury with only one point separating the two heavyweight icons.
Overall, Fury landed 12 more strikes that his opposition, but Ngannou landed five more power punches than Fury, including his big left hand that sent his opponent crashing to the canvas in the third.
With their bout now officially in the books, Tyson Fury will turn his attention toward a long-awaited heavyweight title unification clash with Oleksandr Usyk. The pair are expected to headline an event in Saudi Arabia on December 23, just eight weeks removed from Fury’s fight on Saturday night.
“That’s the two guys I’ve seen now ringside,” McGregor added. “I saw Anthony Joshua in his performance against the Finnish guy, and now I saw Fury. Oh, that’s some great fights in the boxing heavyweight division. It’s on fire at the minute.”
Watch highlights from Fury vs. Ngannou below:
