Francis Ngannou has finally landed the fight of his dreams. It was recently announced that the Cameroonian will face WBC heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury in the squared circle on October 28 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
After months of contract renewal negotiations, Ngannou opted not to continue fighting in the UFC and left the promotion earlier this year. According to Dana White, ‘The Predator’ refused an offer that would’ve made him the highest-paid heavyweight in promotional history. In the following months, White dismissed Ngannou’s boxing pursuits as “gimmicks” and clarified that he wasn’t welcome in the UFC anymore.
In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Francis Ngannou’s manager Marquel Martin was asked about Dana White calling for a Jon Jones vs. Tyson Fury fight after labeling Ngannou vs. Fury a gimmick fight. Martin replied:
“It’s no surprise. Dana is one of the best promoters that we’ve ever seen. I’ll always say that. So when we saw that, we were like, ‘Of course, you would say it’s a gimmick fight… I’m sure that they wanted that fight but at the end of the day, the result is that we’ll be fighting Tyson Fury come October 28.”
Daniel Cormier on Francis Ngannou vs. Tyson Fury
Daniel Cormier recently weighed in on the highly anticipated Francis Ngannou vs. Tyson Fury matchup. While the UFC Hall-Of-Famer was among those who doubted ‘The Predator’ and urged him to return to the UFC, Cormier recently apologized for his cynicism and praised Ngannou for believing in himself.
After his exit from the UFC, Francis Ngannou signed a historic deal with the PFL, which allowed him to pursue to boxing dreams independently. The deal also guaranteed Ngannou company equity and executive leadership roles within the promotion. He is now set to go ten rounds against boxing icon Tyson Fury in October.
In a recent episode of the DC & RC Show on ESPN, Daniel Cormier lauded ‘The Predator’ for securing the massive fight and said:
“First off, I’m sorry, Francis. I want to fumble your bag, too, Francis… He’s going to make more money than he ever could have imagined making in his entire life… They’re fighting in Saudi Arabia, which, somehow, literally just bought the PGA. … Francis and Tyson Fury are going to make so much money, it’s crazy… It’s a crazy turn of events for Francis Ngannou… I’m happy that he’s getting paid in that way.”
According to reports, Francis Ngannou will be making the biggest paycheck of his career, one bigger than all of his previous UFC fights combined.