By Charles Brun: Tonight’s fight between Tyson Fury & Francis Ngannou has been sanctioned by the BBBofC as counting as a professional fight, meaning that the results will show on the records of both fighters. Fury’s WBC heavyweight will NOT be available, which is disappointing to Ngannou because he wanted the opportunity to win it.
Boxing fans are up in arms about Fury vs. Ngannou, counting on the official records because it has an exhibition written all over it. When you drag a guy from another sport into the ring for a boxing match, how in the world does it count as an official match?
Fury-Ngannou is taking a page out of the Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Conor McGregor playbook, with their fight being sanctioned despite involving an MMA guy with no experience in the squared circle going up against a top boxer.
For Fury, it allows him to inflate his already fluff 33-0 record, which only has two standout names on it, Wladimir Klitschko & Deontay Wilder. The rest of the guys Fury has fought during his 15-year career have been scrubs with little talent, just dragged in for him to slap around the ring.
Fury’s most notable opposition:
Wladimir Klitschko – 39-years-old
Deontay Wilder
Dillian Whyte – journeyman
Dereck Chisora – ditto
Otto Wallin
Sam Cunningham – cruiserweight
Christian Hammer
Francesco Pianeta
Will Fury’s chin hold up tonight?
“Tyson Fury is going to weigh more; he’s about four inches taller, he’s a naturally pure boxer and arguably one of the best pure boxers we’ve ever seen in boxing history,” said Stephen A. Smith on his YouTube site, talking about tonight’s fight between ‘The Gypsy King’ Fury and novice Francis Ngannou in their ten round contest on ESPN+ PPV.
The 6’7″ Fury will have a slight height & weight advantage tonight over the 6’4″, but that’s not why he’ll win. The experience that Fury has will obviously be the key to him winning, and that’s if he doesn’t get clipped by one of Ngannou’s big right-hand bombs.
“The big tub of lard that he is with blubber flapping up & down, dances, uses his jab, has power, misses, leans on you, and has a high boxing IQ. I’m just saying. Francis Ngannou, I’ve seen him put people to sleep, but I’ve also seen him throw wild punches as opposed to a straight right, check left hooks. I haven’t seen that from Francis Ngannou,” said Smith.
Ngannou’s nuclear power
“I’ve seen him throw wild haymakers, and when he catches you, it’s lights out,’ said Smith. “That’s what I’ve seen from Francis Ngannou. That ain’t going to work with Tyson Fury, as far as I’m concerned. I think if you’re Tyson Fury, you take Francis Ngannou outside three rounds.”
It would be good for the sport if Ngannou were to knockout Fury tonight because it would eliminate a boring, inactive champion and put an exciting one in his place.
Let’s be real here. Fury has been a major disappointment as the WBC champion, fighting irregularly and using an off-putting stand-up wrestling style to win his three fights as the champ.
If Ngannou wins tonight with his nuclear-powered right hand, it would bring excitement into the heavyweight division and remove a dull champion from the top of the weight class.
“You do that because he has the kind of power that you can’t leave him lurking around with the potential to catch you and put you to sleep,” said Stephen A. about Ngannou. “You got to take it to him; you got to finish him.
“I think because Francis Ngannou has never shown the ability to evade punches because he’s never had to, I don’t know if he learns how to do that now. I hope I’m wrong. I’d love to see a compelling fight.
“I’d love to see Francis Ngannou show boxing skills that none of us knew he had and have a heavyweight champion of the world or a legitimate heavyweight in the sport of boxing with that kind of nuclear power. It would be nice to see. I don’t think that’s what we’re going to see. I’m sorry,’ said Stephen A.
