Will Tyson Fury rematch Francis Ngannou? 'The Gypsy King' makes his feelings clear about a second clash
Tyson Fury will rematch Francis Ngannou in the future, but it won't be next.
'The Gypsy King' returned to the boxing ring last month in Saudi Arabia. There, the WBC heavyweight champion faced Francis Ngannou in the first boxing match of his life. Understandably, 'The Predator' entered the matchup as a massive underdog.
For the first two rounds, it looked like the odds would be correct, as Fury was easily outboxing the MMA fighter. However, a third-round knockdown changed everything, as the British boxer was floored. He was able to get up and fight on, but it was a much different bout from that moment on.
Ultimately, Tyson Fury still escaped the night with a win and his lineal heavyweight title. Following the bout, 'The Gypsy King' had a face-off in the ring with Oleksandr Usyk. The two heavyweight champions were booked to clash in December but have since moved their bout to February.
Post-fight, Francis Ngannou called for a rematch with Fury. In a recent interview with TNT Sports, the Brit stated that he was shocked by the MMA fighter's performance. With that in mind, a second meeting might be in order down the line.
In the clip, Fury stated:
“No, he was what I thought he would be. I thought he would have a puncher’s chance like the rest of them. Listen, he was a good fighter and we’ll probably have a rematch down the line somewhere. Who’d have thought it?”
Tyson Fury vs. Francis Ngannou reportedly bombs on PPV
While Francis Ngannou's performance was impressive, one has to wonder the public appetite for a Tyson Fury rematch.
'The Gypsy King' and 'The Predator' headlined an ESPN pay-per-view offering last month in Saudi Arabia. While the fight itself was entertaining, and the night was full of knockouts, it seemingly didn't get the crowd it expected.
As first reported by Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the pay-per-view event sold around 67,500 in the United States. Obviously, that's just one estimate and doesn't include the U.K. market, which would be massive given Fury's popularity.
That being said, there's no doubt that this figure for Tyson Fury vs. Francis Ngannou is disappointing. While the number will rise when the U.K. market is tallied, it's still a rough figure. Especially considering other big matches this year that did well on pay-per-view, such as Gervonta Davis vs. Ryan Garcia.