Potential bidding war between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury camps for Francis Ngannou's boxing debut, claims Chris Mannix
Sports journalist Chris Mannix speculated that there might be a bidding war between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua's managers for who gets to box Francis Ngannou first.
Mannix made the speculation alongside Max Kellerman on the Max on Boxing show on ESPN MMA:
"If Tyson Fury is able to get past Oleksandr Usyk, I don't expect Tyson Fury to look for a tough fight in his next fight. And when I say that, I'm talking about Francis Ngannou. I think there's going to be a bidding war between Eddie Hearn and Anthony Joshua versus Frank Warren and Tyson Fury, to be the first and probably only guy to get Francis Ngannou into a boxing ring."
Skip to 00:48 for Chris Mannix on who fights Ngannou first:
Mannix continued by saying that Ngannou only has "one shot" at realizing glory in the boxing ring. Both he and Kellerman agreed that 'The Predator' is out of his depth when it comes to boxing the best in the world. Kellerman said that the Cameroonian has "virtually zero chance" at beating either Joshua or Fury in boxing.
According to various sources, Tyson Fury is close to facing undefeated world unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk this year. Usyk holds two wins over former world unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua. As of this writing, Joshua is scheduled to face American boxer Jermaine Franklin at the O2 Arena in London on April 1.
Michael Bisping thinks Francis Ngannou should face Anthony Joshua instead of Tyson Fury
Former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping agreed with Anthony Joshua's manager Eddie Hearn that Ngannou should face the former unified heavyweight champion in his boxing debut.
Bisping entertained the idea of 'The Gypsy King' fighting 'The Predator' with four-ounce gloves and with Mike Tyson as the referee. However, 'The Count' also stated that if he were Francis Ngannou's manager, he'd take the Joshua fight over Fury.
Here's what Michael Bisping said about Ngannou's future opponent in a video uploaded to his YouTube channel:
"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."
Skip to 00:50 for Bisping's stance on Ngannou's boxing debut:
'The Predator' last fought over a year ago against Ciryl Gane at UFC 270, in what was his last MMA bout with the promotion and the last fight on his UFC contract. He was touted to face Jon Jones in his next title defense, but failed contract negotiations led to 'The Predator' asking for a release from the promotion.
On his YouTube channel, Ngannou opened up about why he left the UFC. He stated that he wanted better fighter pay and benefits, not just for himself but for all the fighters in the UFC.