UFC

FRANCIS NGANNOU has called out Tyson Fury and said it is time to stop the talking. Ngannou is a free agent after leaving the UFC and has set his sights on a lucrative move to boxing.
Francis Ngannou called out Tyson Fury and said it is time to stop the talkingCredit: Getty
Tyson Fury challenged the Francis Ngannou to a a hybrid boutCredit: Getty
Fury challenged the Cameroonian to a hybrid bout, in the cage with 4oz gloves on but under boxing rules.
And Ngannou, 36, is ready to accept, insisting the time is right to pit the heavyweight stars against each other.
He told Canal Afrique: “The next step could be that but, once again, everything has to be finalised.
“Let me remind you that Tyson Fury and I have been warming up on social media for more than two years.
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“Obviously we all need this fight. It’s been long enough. Hopefully we have the possibility of dotting the i’s.”
Fury, 34, is currently in talks over the heavyweight division’s first four-belt undisputed title decider with Oleksandr Usyk.
But he warned attention will turn to a blockbuster crossover fight with Ngannou if terms for the historic unification are not met.
Fury said to Seconds Out: “Francis Ngannou, I know you’re out of contract with the UFC. You want to earn some big boy money?
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“Come see the Gypsy King and let’s do a big, big fight for the baddest MF on the planet.
“Let’s kick it up spicy, in a cage, four-ounce gloves under Queensbury [rules] and let’s have a badass referee like Iron Mike Tyson.
“Did I just sell that to the world? If the contract doesn’t get signed with Usyk next for the fight of the century in boxing then we’ll do the Ngannou fight.”
Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou at WembleyCredit: BT SPORTS More

FRANCIS NGANNOU has been given a glimmer of hope against Tyson Fury – if they agree to an unprecedented mixed-rules bout. Fury has called to fight Ngannou in a hybrid bout, in the cage with 4oz gloves on but under boxing rules.
UFC middleweight Darren Till pictured with Tyson Fury
Francis Ngannou has left the UFCCredit: Getty
And UFC heavyweight Tom Aspinall believes it help level the playing field slightly.
He told talkSPORT: “Punching with boxing gloves and MMA gloves is completely different.
“The boxers are very used to the rings, obviously, because that’s all they’ve fought in, and the cage is completely different.
“You can’t ride punches as well in a cage as you can in a ring. I mean, there’s no leaning back over the top rope in a cage, if you start leaning back you’re going to get knocked out.
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“It definitely evens it up a lot. I don’t know what they are trying to do with the rounds. If they do three five-minute rounds that will suit Ngannou as well.
“It definitely evens it up more than fighting in a ring with boxing gloves on.”
Ngannou, 36, is now a free agent having walked out on the UFC after failing to agree a new contract, which saw him stripped of the title.
But it now paves the way for the Cameroonian to realise his long-standing dream of a career in boxing.
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Fury, 34, is currently in talks for the heavyweight division’s first four-belt undisputed title decider with Oleksandr Usyk, 36.
But he warned attention will turn to a blockbuster crossover fight with Ngannou if terms for the historic unification are not met.
Despite Ngannou’s devastating punch power – which is equal to being hit with a sledgehammer – Aspinall remains realistic on his chances against boxing’s best.
He said: “I think they are good fights for PR and money and stuff.
“I mean, everyone has got a chance, especially with heavyweights, but I think it’s a very, very slim chance.
“[It’s tough] when you’re boxing someone who is a specialist in just boxing, us as MMA fighters, boxing is just a small part of our game really.
“It is definitely a part of the game, but pure boxing is different, it’s a whole other sport on its own
“I definitely think it’ll be great for his career and he definitely has a chance of winning but I don’t think the chance is very big to be honest.”
UFC heavyweight contender Tom AspinallCredit: Getty More

DILLIAN WHYTE has thrown his name into the hat to welcome former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou to the boxing ring.The Cameroonian clubber officially became a free agent this month after he failed to agree a new deal with mixed martial arts’ premier promotion.
Francis Ngannou is a free agent after failing to agree a new deal with the UFCCredit: GETTY
The former UFC heavyweight champ is hoping to box later this yearCredit: GETTY
Brit Dillian Whyte is willing face The Predator in both boxing and MMACredit: MATCHROOM BOXING
Ngannou, 35, has had several boxing and MMA promoters reach out to him following his UFC departure but is leaning towards competing in the former.
And recent WBC heavyweight title challenger Whyte is keen to throw down with the vicious knockout artist, who he’s also willing to trade leather with in the cage.
The Body Snatcher told Sky Sports: “I would love to fight him.
“Obviously he is a champion, a dangerous guy, but I think I would bash him up.
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“It would be a very interesting fight, because we both have got a martial arts background and he’s up for jumping in at the deep end, fighting someone like me. It would get lots of interest and eyeballs.”
Whyte, 34, is no stranger to the confines of the cage having fought under the UCMMA banner nearly 15 years ago.
So he’s certainly not afraid to put himself in harm’s way and face The Predator at his own game.
He said: “A lot of these boxing guys pick on these MMA and martial arts guys and beat them up in a boxing ring.
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“But they are not brave enough to get in the cage.
“I would happily fight him in boxing and in the cage as well.”
Ngannou’s seven-year stint in the octagon was filled with brutal and viral knockouts, although his highlight reel doesn’t strike fear into the hear of the heavy-handed Whyte.
The Brit said: “It is much easier to knock people out with four-ounce gloves that have next to no padding.
“Can he do the same with a 10-ounce boxing glove? I know I can.”
“Obviously he’s a good fighter, he’s strong, but there are a lot of holes in his game.
“He is throwing from far away, he is a slugger.
Francis Ngannou’s ferocious striking doesn’t intimidate Dillian WhyteCredit: Alamy
“In MMA, that style runs, because you have small gloves and you just need to connect anywhere with someone to do damage.
“But this is boxing. You need skills and good timing.
“He can’t just come out and start slugging and think he can knock people out.
“A guy standing in front of him can make him miss. All those punches he throws.
“He’s dangerous and a big strong guy, but it’s a great fight for me, to be honest.”
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Brixton banger Whyte hasn’t fought since his controversial decision victory over Jermaine Franklin last November.
A summer trilogy fight with Anthony Joshua is in the pipeline for the fan favourite, provided Joshua gets past American Franklin on April 1. More

DEONTAY WILDER’S manager has opened the door to a massive fight with ex-UFC champion Francis Ngannou. Ngannou has walked out on the UFC – being stripped of the title – after failing to agree a new contract.
Deontay Wilder’s manager has opened the door to a fight with Francis NgannouCredit: Reuters
Francis Ngannou has left the UFCCredit: Getty
And already the Cameroonian has talked up a lucrative switch to the boxing ring.
Wilder’s manager Shelly Finkel once held tentative talks with UFC president Dana White for a fight between the American and Ngannou.
And he is willing to revisit the idea now the heavyweight is a free agent following his UFC exit.
Finkel told SunSport: “I’d be open to it, I’d be foolish to say. ‘I’m not interested, don’t talk to me.’ 
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“As a matter of fact, Dana White and I had some conversations but it just never went anywhere. Dana actually wanted it. 
“Then Deontay met Ngannou when he was training for Robert Helenius, while he was out in Vegas and they got along fine.”
Wilder, 37, was welcomed to the UFC’s training facility last year before he brutally knocked out Helenius, 38, in round one of his October return.
And he bumped into Ngannou, fuelling speculation of a blockbuster bout between the two famed punchers.
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And Wilder recently welcomed the fight when asked about Ngannou’s decision to leave the UFC.
He told ESNews: “I would love to. Another African brother. I respect his decision on what he’s done.”
Wilder and his team have pursued a fight with Anthony Joshua, 33, following years of failed talks in the past.
But Joshua is on a rebuilding job following consecutive points losses to unbeaten Oleksandr Usyk, 36.
AJ looks set to return on April 1 at the O2 Arena against Jermaine Franklin, 29, who lost a disputed decision to Dillian Whyte, 34, in November.
So Wilder has turned his attention to Andy Ruiz Jr, 33, after the WBC ordered them into a final eliminator for the title.
Finkel said: “Deontay is in good spirits, right now we’re looking at a couple of options and most likely we’ll be fighting Ruiz, I hope in the second quarter of the year.
“In the next couple of weeks I’ll know if that can be made. Ruiz is not a second-class opponent, so he’s asking for a good payday also, which makes it all the more difficult.” 
Deontay Wilder pictured with Francis Ngannou More

TYSON FURY has been slammed for the “dumbest idea in sports history” after calling out Francis Ngannou to a hybrid-rules fight. Ngannou is now a free agent having walked out on the UFC, while still heavyweight champion, after failing to agree a new contract.
Tyson Fury has called out Francis NgannouCredit: Rex
Francis Ngannou left the UFC after failing to agree a new contractCredit: Getty
And it has cleared the pathway to realising his long-standing dream of a career in boxing.
Fury, 34, proposed a hybrid bout against Ngannou, 36, including a fight with smaller 4oz gloves in the cage but under boxing rules.
Although ex-UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen, 45, has ridiculed the idea.
He said on his YouTube channel: “I see Tyson Fury come out over the weekend and finally clear up first what we’re going to do first with Francis.
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“They’ve always said they’re going to make up a sport. These two were going to do a game, but they were going to do something combat related.
“For reasons unknown, they weren’t going to box. Francis offered to box, and for reasons unknown, Tyson did not accept that invitation, and they were going to make up rules.
“Tyson finally laid out for us what they are. They were going to fight in a cage. I have no idea why. They’re going to fight in a cage. OK, fine.
“They’re going to wear 4oz gloves. I have no idea why, but OK, fine. They are then going to follow boxing rules, the rules of Queensberry.
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“I put this out there because of how disappointing it is to see these boxers as beggers.
“Guys that are hot to fight to go out there and get it on your own, that have physical capabilities that other men can only dream of.
“But they don’t know how to go out there and get it on their own. They just don’t know how.
“I bring it to you because to watch Tyson Fury beg, it was surprising. I don’t want to call it disappointing.
“It was really close to calling it that, but I don’t want to call it that.
I bring it to you because to watch Tyson Fury beg, it was surprising. I don’t want to call it disappointing. Chael Sonnen on Tyson Fury calling out Francis Ngannou
“So Tyson comes to us with perhaps the dumbest idea in sports history, perhaps. He knows it is.”
Fury is currently in talks for the heavyweight division’s first four-belt undisputed title decider with Oleksandr Usyk, 36.
But as negotiations drag on, the Gypsy King is lining up Ngannou as a blockbuster alternative.
He told Seconds Out: “Francis Ngannou, I know you’re out of contract with the UFC. You want to earn some big boy money?
“Come see the Gypsy King and let’s do a big, big fight for the baddest MF on the planet.
Read More on The Sun
“Let’s kick it up spicy, in a cage, four-ounce gloves under Queensbury [rules] and let’s have a badass referee like Iron Mike Tyson.
“Did I just sell that to the world? If the contract doesn’t get signed with Usyk next for the fight of the century in boxing then we’ll do the Ngannou fight.”
Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou at WembleyCredit: BT SPORTS More