WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury acted unsurprised by Anthony Joshua’s devastating two-round destruction of Francis Ngannou last Friday night, saying that he’d predicted AJ would knock him out in the first round.
Ego Protection or Bitter Truth?
In the next breath, Fury minimized Joshua’s win by saying, “That’s what a boxer should do against an MMA fighter.” The begrudging praise that Fury had given Joshua had to be followed up with a remark that made light of his win at the time.
The Gypsy King was clearly shell-shocked by what he had witnessed, so his defense mechanism to protect his ego was to minimize the situation.
It was difficult for the unbeaten Fury to give Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) full credit for his win over Ngannou, as this is the same fighter that he arguably lost to last October and was shown to be an old, washed fighter by the novice.
Ngannou had exposed Fury’s decline for all to see, putting the spotlight on what’s left of the 35-year-old, who was clearly never as good as many of the more impressionable fans had originally thought.
Joshua’s Validation
Joshua’s two-round knockout of Ngannou showed the difference between the two fighters. Fury looked terrible against Ngannou, getting beaten to the punch all night by the faster, more powerful ex-UFC heavyweight champion and taking some massive shots that would have KO’d a fighter with a lesser chin.
The 35-year-old Tyson will put his career on the line in his May 18th undisputed heavyweight championship next against IBF/WBA/WBO champion Oleksandr Usyk in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Of course, that’s if Fury doesn’t pull out of the fight again with some type of injury excuse.
“It was a fantastic knockout. I almost got it right. I predicted one round, and you got it in two,” said Tyson Fury on the iFL TV channel. “It was a rude awakening for Ngannou. Listen, he got a bit cocky like he did, and it was what it was.
“He got knocked out. That’s what a boxer should do against an MMA fighter. So, credit to AJ; he did a fantastic job.
Focus on Usyk… But Questions Remain
“I’ve got the undisputed championship coming May 18th, and that’s all that matters. This was a shock fight for Saudi Arabia for Joshua’s bank account and for Ngannou’s bank account. So credit to both of them, but I’ve got a real fight on May 18th against Usyk, the man who defeated AJ twice.
Fury putting his focus on his next fight against the unbeaten Usyk is a sneaky deflection from Joshua’s triumph against Ngannou.
