UFC

TYSON FURY has received a deadline for a proposed rematch with Francis Ngannou.The Gypsy King locked horns with the former UFC heavyweight champion in a controversial crossover clash – which was dubbed ‘The Battle of the Baddest’ – last October.
Former UFC champ Francis Ngannou locked horns with Tyson Fury last OctoberCredit: Reuters
Ngannou cut and dropped The Gypsy King in the third round of their Saudi showdownCredit: GETTY
The Predator has set Fury a deadline for their proposed rematchCredit: REUTERS
But he was left red-faced by the boxing novice as was cut and dropped on his way to eking out a narrow split decision win.
Ngannou, 37, is hellbent on sharing the ring with Fury again but refuses to hang around forever for a second crack at the Brit.
While discussing his upcoming showdown with Anthony Joshua, he told MMA Fighting: “I win this fight and I’m fighting Fury period.
“Whether or not he has the belt. Our rematch term was within next year, so it’s going to be October this year.
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“I just want to be free and fight, the thing is with the title is this is a system I don’t want to fall into anymore.
“You have to make a concession with an organisation, I don’t want that political stuff.”
Before Ngannou can think about throwing down with Fury again, he must first get past former two-time unified champ Joshua.
Joshua, 34, has breathed new life into his career following back-to-back losses to Oleksandr Usyk with wins over Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius and Otto Wallin last year.
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ANTHONY JOSHUA VS FRANCIS NGANNOU: ALL THE DETAILS YOU NEED AHEAD OF HUGE CROSSOVER BOUT
But Ngannou is confident he’ll dramatically halt AJ’s bid to become a three-time champion.
He said: “I think he’s still the same fighter but that doesn’t mean he can’t lose.
“He lost to Andy Ruiz and to Usyk. He can still lose by the way.
“If Joshua takes the punch that Fury took, I don’t guarantee that he is getting up from it.
“I have heard that he doesn’t have a chin, but we are going to find it.”
Professional Fighters League pounder Ngannou is so confident of having his hand raised that he’s already thinking of a historic showdown with AJ in Africa.
He said: “At the end of the day, it’s great stuff for both of us.
“He could be my brother and I’d still fight him because it elevates us both, it elevates the sport, it elevates the continent.
“It’s not about a fight.
“You are not fighting somebody because you hate him, you fight him because it’s a challenge and the fight always elevates both fighters.
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“Eddie Hearn said a lot of s***, but one thing he said that makes sense is maybe a potential rematch in Africa with Joshua.
“I think that sounds cool. We will call that Black Excellence.” More

FRANCIS NGANNOU insists Tyson Fury owes him a rematch – and he’s willing to forego a crack at undisputed glory to get it.The former UFC heavyweight champ embarrassed The Gypsy King in his professional boxing debut last October, dropping him in the third round of their Saudi showdown.
Francis Ngannou locked horns with Tyson Fury last OctoberCredit: REUTERS
The former UFC champ shocked the world by dropping and going the distance with FuryCredit: Getty
Ngannou insists Fury ‘owes’ him a rematchCredit: REUTERS
Fury eked out a controversial split decision victory over the boxing novice to preserve next month’s undisputed heavyweight title fight with Oleksandr Usyk.
Ngannou is expected to be ringside for the historic clash but won’t pursue former pound-for-pound Usyk if he hands the Brit his first professional loss
The MMA man-mountain told TMZ: “I’m not looking for the winner of Tyson Fury [and Usyk]. “I’m looking for Tyson.
“Tyson owes me a fight. I don’t give a s*** about the winner of Usyk and Tyson.
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“I’m coming after Tyson. Win or lose, I want Tyson.”
Ngannou, 37, will return to the ring in March for a lucrative Saudi showdown with former two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua
The Cameroonian clubber is relishing the Riyadh rumble but admits the element of surprise won’t be in his favour come fight night.
He said: “He’s seen me box already, so he knows a little bit what is coming after.
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ANTHONY JOSHUA VS FRANCIS NGANNOU: ALL THE DETAILS YOU NEED AHEAD OF HUGE CROSSOVER BOUT
“Unlike Tyson Fury, that was out of the blue, didn’t know what to expect. Joshua kind of knows what to expect.
“I think this time I need to put it up even more to get the job done.”
That being said, the Professional Fighters League pounder believes he has what it takes to emphatically thwart AJ’s hopes of becoming a three-time heavyweight champion.
During an appearance on The MMA Hour, he said: “Eddie [Hearn] is a promoter, that’s a routine for him.
“He says the same thing all the time, just not about Francis Ngannou but somebody else.
“That’s just what he does. The date is set.
“It’s two months from now, and if any of them think they’re going to have easy money, that’s too bad for them.
“If AJ takes the punch that Fury took, I don’t guarantee that he’s standing up.
“I’ve heard that he doesn’t have a chin. I’m going to find out.” More

FRANCIS NGANNOU has vowed to give Anthony Joshua’s chin a good test in their shock showdown.The former UFC heavyweight champion will throw down with the golden boy of British boxing in a lucrative March melee in Saudi Arabia.
Anthony Joshua will be back in action in Saudi Arabia in MarchCredit: MATCHROOM BOXING
AJ will face former UFC heavyweight champion Francis NgannouCredit: GETTY
Ngannou has vowed to hand AJ his second professional stoppage lossCredit: PA
Ngannou, 37, bagged the Riyadh rumble with AJ on the back of a stunning display against Tyson Fury last October, in which he dropped the Gypsy King.
And The Predator is confident the left hook that floored the WBC heavyweight king will put AJ out for the count.
During an appearance on The MMA Hour, the Cameroonian clubber said: “If AJ takes the punch that Fury took, I don’t guarantee that he’s standing up.
“I’ve heard that he doesn’t have a chin. I’m going to find out.”
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Long-time AJ promoter Eddie Hearn was critical of Ngannou’s boxing skills prior to his shock display against Fury, who eked out a split decision victory over the MMA man mountain.
The Matchroom Boxing chief has somewhat changed his opinion, although he believes Ngannou will be “easy work” for Watford warrior AJ.
Ngannou, however, plans to give both men a rude awakening with another shock display in Riyadh.
He said of Hearn’s comments: “Eddie is a promoter, that’s a routine for him.
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ANTHONY JOSHUA VS FRANCIS NGANNOU: ALL THE DETAILS YOU NEED AHEAD OF HUGE CROSSOVER BOUT
“He says the same thing all the time, just not about Francis Ngannou but somebody else.
“That’s just what he does. The date is set.
“It’s two months from now, and if any of them think they’re going to have easy money, that’s too bad for them.”
Ngannou is so confident of getting the better of AJ that he’s already mentally drawing up plans to rematch the Nigerian-born Brit in Africa.
He said: “At the end of the day, it’s great stuff for both of us.
“He could be my brother and I’d still fight him because it elevates us both, it elevates the sport, it elevates the continent.
“It’s not about a fight.
“You are not fighting somebody because you hate him, you fight him because it’s a challenge and the fight always elevates both fighters.
Read more on The Sun
“Eddie Hearn said a lot of s***, but one thing he said that makes sense is maybe a potential rematch in Africa with Joshua.
“I think that sounds cool. We will call that Black Excellence.” More

FRANCIS NGANNOU has confirmed he will have a rematch with Tyson Fury after controvresially losing to the Gypsy King in October.But first, the Cameroonian fighter will head back in the ring for a lucrative Saudi showdown with Anthony Joshua in March.
Francis Ngannou has revealed a rematch will happen with Tyson Fury in OctoberCredit: Reuters
Ngannou will first be back in action against Anthony Joshua in MarchCredit: Getty
In October last year Ngannou shocked the world on is boxing debut with a virtuoso display against WBC heavyweight champ Tyson Fury, dropping him in the third round of their “Battle of the Baddest”.
Despite the former UFC heavyweight champion controversially losing on points to the Gypsy King – he is ready to get back in the ring to do it all again.
In an interview with the MMA Hour the Predator confirmed the contract clause between him and Fury meant a rematch would not happen right away, but within 12 months of the first bout.

He said: “The rematch has never been right away.
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“I think there’s even a slight chance that the ‘right away’ is the Usyk rematch.
“Because I think their term is even closer, our rematch term was in one year. Within one year. Which is still gonna be in October this year.”
But before Fury, Ngannou will take on AJ in a money-spinning clash where Forbes predict after pay-per-view and additional bonuses, the Cameroonian will take home at least $20m (£15.7m).
SunSport understands the Riyadh rumble has been earmarked for March 9 – the date initially reserved for Joshua’s now dead-in-the-water clash with Deontay Wilder.
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Meanwhile, Fury will bid to become the undisputed ruler of the heavyweight division in Saudi Arabia next month in a long-overdue showdown with former pound-for-pound king Oleksandr Usyk.
Ngannou continued: “It’s going to happen. I mean there’s Fury and Oleksandr Usyk, even then we spoke about it.
“There’s Fury and Usyk going on, so the Joshua fight was like an opportunity.
“I was waiting for Fury, but this was the opportunity that I was happy to take, I asked for.
“And at the end of the day, this won’t take anything away from the Fury rematch.”
Ngannou is also signed with the Professional Fighters League so fans could expect him to return to MMA in between his fights with AJ and Fury.
He hasn’t been in the octagon since his win over Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 in January 2022. More

EDDIE HEARN has confirmed Anthony Joshua’s next fight will be against UFC legend Francis Ngannou.After reports emerged on social media late on Friday night, the Matchroom boxing chief took to X to announce that they were true.
Anthony Joshua is set for a bumper Saudi showdown in MarchCredit: Reuters
He will face UFC legend Francis Ngannou, the man who floored Tyson FuryCredit: Getty
AJ’s promoter Eddie Hearn has confirmed the fight is a ‘done deal’Credit: Getty

And he announced that the exact date for the mega-money clash will unveiled at a press conference in London on January 15.
Hearn wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: “Tonight we confirm it’s a Done Deal! @anthonyjoshua v @francis_ngannou collide on a huge night in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – press conference Jan 15 in London with full details dropping soon.”
The bout is expected to be a ten-round boxing match between the two-time former heavyweight champion and ex-UFC title holder and is another coup for Saudi dealmaker Turki Al-Sheikh.
The news comes after AJ’s £100million two-fight deal with Deontay Wilder went up in smoke last month after the American suffered a shock defeat to former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker.
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The first of the duo’s back-to-back fights was set to take place in Saudi Arabia on March 9.
But a spring return to action still appears to be on the cards for the Brit, even though a long-overdue showdown with Wilder isn’t.
Hearn also recently revealed that he hopes Joshua can replicate the schedule he had in 2023, in which he fought three times in the space of ten months, winning all three.
He beat Jermain Franklin by unanimous decision back in March before knocking out Robert Helenius in the seventh round in August.
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Joshua then stretched his winning-streak to three by forcing Wallin to retire at the end of the fifth round last month in Saudi.
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Meanwhile the 37-year-old Ngannou put his MMA career on hold last year to fight WBC champ Tyson Fury, 35, in Saudi.
He shockingly dropped the Gypsy King only to be controversially beaten on points but his stock has risen.
And now he has secured what promises to be another bumper payday against one of boxing’s finest after banking £8m for his last outing in the ring with Fury.
Ngannou posted his own message to fans on social media tonight amid the news, saying: “Making big moves in the new year. 2024 is going to be [fire emoji].”
Joshua is desperate to return to the top of the mountain in the heavyweight division and become a three-time champ.
However, he and the rest of the top contenders are currently waiting to see who emerges triumphant when Fury and Oleksandr Usyk face-off in their unification fight.
That mouthwatering showdown will also take place in Saudi on February 17 at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh.
Usyk, who beat Joshua for the WBA, WBO and IBF straps and then triumphed in the rematch, has a record of 21-0, while undefeated Fury sits at 33-1-0.
Francis Ngannou was widely-praised for his performance against the Gypsy KingCredit: Reuters
Anthony Joshua looked back to his best when he battered Otto WallinCredit: Getty
Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk will unify the heavyweight division in FebruaryCredit: EPA

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