The rivalry between Francis Ngannou and Tyson Fury is far from over.
On Friday, March 8, the former UFC heavyweight champion will step back inside the squared circle for a fight with the WBC’s top-ranked heavyweight contender, Anthony Joshua. Appearing on stage at a pre-fight press event on Wednesday, Ngannou shared his goal of getting past Joshua in hopes of securing a second fight with the WBC’s reigning heavyweight titleholder, Tyson Fury.
“He will be the best so far, but I’m just getting started,” Ngannou said. “I’m looking for the victory on Friday, I don’t think it will be a statement because the road is still long. I want one more over Tyson because I had the first one over him and I intend to have a second!”
Fury, who was in the crowd for the press event, shouted something back at Ngannou which sparked a fiery response from the Cameroonian.
“I’m going to wipe the ring with your a** again – there was blood in the ring!” Ngannou added. Your only chance is in the boxing ring with boxing rules, when you step out of the ring you better stay five meters away because if I lose it, you’ll have a really bad time my friend.
“Respect the fact boxing rules are protecting you because you are nothing in front of me. I’ll beat you every day, twice on Sunday!”
Francis Ngannou just COOKED Tyson Fury in the crowd at the presser 😳 pic.twitter.com/VGaLPyxUWc
— Happy Punch (@HappyPunch) March 6, 2024
Francis Ngannou and Tyson Fury went 10 rounds in October with ‘The Gypsy King’ walking away with the victory via a razor-close and highly questionable split decision. Despite coming up short, Ngannou’s performance was hailed by pundits, particularly after he managed to send Fury crashing to the canvas in the third round with a perfectly timed counter left.
Ngannou’s showing was good enough to land him at No. 10 on the WBC’s heavyweight top 10, setting the stage for his fight with Anthony Joshua in Riyadh.
Watch the full Ngannou vs. Joshua press event below:
