"Deontay hits every bit as hard as Francis" - John McCarthy on how a fight between Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou would play out
Francis Ngannou has repeatedly hinted that a move to boxing may well be on the cards for him in the near future.
The obvious fight to make would be for him to face off against Tyson Fury, who is riding high off his trilogy victory over Deontay Wilder.
Former MMA referee and now Bellator commentator John McCarthy recently discussed how he believes a fight between UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou and WBC heavyweight champ Tyson Fury would play out.
Speaking on episode 193 of the Weighing In podcast, John McCarthy had the following to say about a potential Ngaannou vs. Fury matchup:
"Let's just be honest. Tyson Fury is the best heavyweight boxer in the world right now. By far... This is the thing with Francis. Francis is a stud and he's got power. Do ya think that guy, he [Fury] fought in the trilogies has no power in his hands? Deontay hits every bit as hard as Francis Ngannou. So the power of Francis is not going to be a problem. If you're talking about this in a boxing ring, Tyson Fury takes him every time."
Josh Thomson believes Francis Ngannou would have a better chance at beating Fury if they boxed with MMA gloves
John McCarthy's co-host on the Weighing In podcast, Josh Thomson, noted that if Francis Ngannou and Tyson Fury boxed whilst wearing MMA gloves, the fight would have a considerably different dynamic to it. He believes Fury's defensive strategy would have to change with the smaller gloves.
John McCarthy backed up this sentiment. He added:
"Yeah. Obviously it would have to change because he's used to using something's that got a lot of frontal face area, not cushioning, it's the area that it covers that he can use to actually parry the shots of his opponent and everything. So it definitely would change things."
You can check out the full episode of John McCarthy and Josh Thomson's Weighing In podcast below: