Former UFC champion names who Francis Ngannou should box instead of Tyson Fury
While many expect it to come against Tyson Fury, former UFC champion Michael Bisping has a different name in mind for Francis Ngannou's potential boxing debut.
On his YouTube channel, 'The Count' supported the idea of Francis Ngannou facing former WBA, IBF, WBO, and IBO champion Anthony Joshua. The suggestion was initially made by the British boxer's promoter Eddie Hearn.
Francis Ngannou recently left the the UFC due to a contract dispute with the world's premier MMA promotion. According to 'The Predator', he not only wanted a better contract for himself, but also for the rest of the fighters on the UFC rosters.
Here's what Michael Bisping said about Ngannou's potential boxing opponent:
"Since 'The Predator' left the UFC, Tyson [Fury] once again called him [out], said [he wanted to fight with] four ounce gloves in a cage with the spicy referee like Mike Tyson. Now, since then, Eddie Hearn, who is the promoter of Anthony Joshua, he has come out and he's thrown Anthony Joshua's name into the mix as a potential opponent for Francis Ngannou. And I gotta say, if I'm managing Francis Ngannou, that is the boxing fight to take."
After knocking out Dillian Whyte and defending his WBC and The Ring heavyweight titles, Tyson Fury took the opportunity to call out Ngannou, who was still the UFC heavyweight champion back in April 2022.
While in the ring with the Cameroonian, 'The Gypsy King' said:
"I'm the boxing heavyweight champion. [Ngannou is the] UFC heavyweight champion. He's in great shape, look at the muscles on him. Good man, Francis. He's a good looking chum, isn't he?"
Check out Fury's callout of Ngannou below:
Francis Ngannou's legendary rise in combat sports
Ngannou is widely regarded as one of the scariest fighters to have graced the octagon. 'The Predator' is a uniquely gifted fighter who, despite training for a relatively short period in MMA, took out names like Curtis Blaydes, Andrei Arlovski, Cain Velasquez, Junior dos Santos, and former heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic.
Prior to finding success in combat sports, he worked in sand quarries to make a living as a 10-year-old in Cameroon. Ngannou made multiple attempts to escape his living conditions in his native country and sought better opportunities in Europe.
Upon finally arriving in the continent, 'The Predator' was jailed in Spain for two months for being an illegal immigrant.
Francis Ngannou pursued boxing to avoid joining violent gangs, and distanced himself from his father's reputation as a street fighter. He started training in boxing at the age of 22 but had to quit a year into training due to health issues.
At the age of 26, after getting to Paris, he joined the MMA Factory and trained under Fernand Lopez.
Lopez saw Ngannou's natural talent and suggested that he pursue a career in MMA instead of boxing. What followed was a spectacular heavyweight career, with 'The Predator' amassing a UFC record of 12-2 and an overall MMA record of 17-3.H e has 12 wins by knockout, four submission victories and one win by decision.