Francis Ngannou is convinced that he’ll eventually go one-on-one with Tyson Fury.
The general consensus is that Fury is the best heavyweight in boxing. He is the WBC and The Ring Champion and he’s fresh off a sixth-round knockout victory over Dillian Whyte on April 23. While the “Gypsy King” hasn’t announced his retirement from pro boxing, he did say that fight with Whyte could be his final curtain call.
With that said, Fury isn’t opposed to exhibition bouts. The one name that stands out to him is Ngannou for a hybrid fight.
Francis Ngannou On Talks With UFC
During an appearance on The MMA Hour, Francis Ngannou told Ariel Helwani that he did have a “clear the air” dinner with UFC officials, including Dana White following his win over Ciryl Gane. Ngannou is in the midst of a contract dispute with the promotion.
“We had a meeting, I would say a dinner, with the UFC and that wasn’t about a contract situation. It was just to clear the air. Because it’s clear that at this point we have to clear the air. It was just to try to clean things out, speak things out and I was speaking about my frustration. But also I had to go back home because it’s not a thing that’s supposed to be solved in one night or over one dinner, or two dinners. It might take some time.”
The heavyweight champion has been candid about his issues with UFC brass. Though tensions between the two sides are high, Ngannou is eager to sign with the UFC again, but only subject to one condition.
“The Tyson Fury fight has to be part of the discussion. That’s not an option. It has to be part of the discussion because if that’s not part of the discussion, it will never be. If I sign another contract now, basically the same model of the contract, I’m screwed. That’s not happening ever. So we have to figure out a way to implement this into a contract.”
It is possible for Ngannou to fight Fury outside of the UFC once his championship clause expires. Despite this, he believes the UFC will be the perfect place for him to continue his career in MMA.
“I think the UFC is a good promotion, and I want to keep fighting,” Ngannou said. “The Tyson Fury is not my last fight. I want to keep fighting. After Tyson Fury there’s still a lot of fights. There’s the Jon Jones, there’s the Stipe trilogy.
“There’s big fights I can do in the UFC, and I would really like that to happen. I would really like us to get to a common point. Yes, I can do the Tyson Fury fight on my own, but what’s next? I would like to keep fighting. I would like for us to come to an agreement.”
Tyson Fury Fight Inevitable?
Ngannou went on to say that he feels that a showdown with Fury is a matter of “if” not “when.”
“I would say I don’t know how close is it, but I think it’s very clear that this fight is gonna happen. Both of us, we want this fight. That’s clear and we respected each other as you can see in the [ring].
“The guy just earned a moment, he was the man of the night. He could’ve just stood there and be cocky and like, ‘Oh, I’m this, I’m that,’ but he called me in the ring and he spoke to me very respectfully as a champion. I respect him as well.
“So, I think it’s gonna happen. I think it’s just a matter of our promotion, the contract situation and everything but we’re gonna sort this out at some point. Probably next year and this fight’s gonna happen.”
