Kamaru Usman calls for Oleksandr Usyk to test himself against Francis Ngannou - "Francis is the biggest puncher out there"
Oleksandr Usyk was recently challenged by Kamaru Usman to compete against Francis Ngannou. Unlike Ngannou, Usyk succeeded in defeating Fury after a fiercely contested 12 rounds and became the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999.
The highly anticipated heavyweight title-unification bout between Usyk and Tyson Fury, billed as 'Ring of Fire' took place last weekend at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The contest lived up to expectations, with notable momentum shifts throughout all 12 rounds. The ninth round turned out to be decisive, as Usyk landed a left hook that nearly resulted in a stoppage and sent Fury tumbling. Usyk held his lead and prevailed via split decision according to the judges' scorecards (115-112, 113-114, 114-113).
In a recent episode of Pound 4 Pound Podcast, Usman discussed Usyk's win over Fury with former UFC two-division champion Henry Cejudo. The former UFC welterweight champion expressed his desire to see Usyk take on Ngannou, saying:
''I know it's crazy... but I would love to see [Usyk] fight a guy like Francis Ngannou. Yes I wanna see the level of skill here. Yes he schooled the other guys, but Francis is the biggest puncher out there. But I want to see how Oleksandr Usyk is able to break a guy like that down."
Check out Kamaru Usman's comments below:
Last October, Ngannou made his boxing debut against Fury, giving him one of the toughest fights of his career. Despite being a huge underdog, 'The Predator' landed the sole knockdown of the bout and lost on a razor-thin split decision.
In his last boxing outing this March, Ngannou was defeated by Anthony Joshua, the same man who was defeated by Usyk twice, via second-round TKO.
Although their match-up is unlikely, it would be intriguing to see how Usyk performs against Ngannou.
When Francis Ngannou expressed his desire to face Oleksandr Usyk
Francis Ngannou had previously outlined a clear plan of action to create his boxing legacy.
When Ngannou met Tyson Fury, he nearly took the fighter out in the third round, shocking the combat sports world. Ultimately, he lost the fight via split decision. Then, 'Predator' came up short against Anthony Joshua, losing the fight via second-round TKO.
In an interview with Frank Warren's Queensberry Promotions before his fight with Joshua, Ngannou said that Oleksandr Usyk is another boxer he would like to face. He stated:
“[Anthony Joshua] is one of the great, one of the best fighters out there. I always said, ‘Whenever I get into boxing, it’s going to be three names - Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, and Deontay Wilder’. So far the landscape hasn’t changed. I think Oleksandr Usyk is adding himself on the list. But basically, those are the pioneers of the boxing in this generation.”
Check out Francis Ngannou's comments below (1:36):