TYSON FURY wants to fill UFC champ Francis Ngannou’s pockets before he fills him in.
The mixed martial arts heavyweight king made just $650,000 from his last title defence and is now on strike until his contract ends.
So Fury — who insists he is quitting traditional championship boxing after April 23’s WBC title defence against Dillian Whyte — has promised him a good payday and a good hiding.
He is willing to step into the cage of Ngannou and wear tiny 4oz MMA gloves for the crossover Las Vegas showdown next year.
The undefeated 6ft 9in Morecambe ace said: “I hear he has some beef with the UFC, so is sitting the season out.
“His time will come to make big money and I will offer him a big purse, of course I will.
“I will have retired from competitive championship boxing by then. I won’t be the WBC champion and he won’t be the UFC champion.
“Ngannou is a much cruder version of Deontay Wilder and we all know what happened there.
“A boxing ring is my home, it would be like him fighting a shark in the ocean, so I have to come out of my comfort zone to give him a chance.”
After settling his trilogy with Wilder, Fury — set to earn £25million from his Whyte fight — said: “I appreciate every purse I have ever got because it has not always been 20 or 30 million. That’s mega-money.”