All the greats from the martial arts world – and far beyond – gathered in Riyadh last night for the most anticipated boxing camp of the year.
A boxing champion against an MMA star: a clash of styles personified by Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou.
And you can take that very literally.
Many boxing critics predicted that Ngannou – like many debutants – would have difficulties with the technicalities of boxing, but the Cameroonian powerhouse quickly showed that he was a natural talent.
The MMA player did not rush towards his target like a madman, but surprised friend and foe with controlled boxing skills.
Because what everyone in the Fury camp secretly feared happened in the third round: Ngannou landed a searing left on Fury’s marble, who fell to the ground.
Everyone held their breath for a moment.
But The Gipsy King is simply not up to his test piece. He also recovered from a ruthless knock down against Deontay Wilder a few years ago.
And yes, this time too the boxing champion grabbed his feet again.
With Ngannou’s strength in mind, Fury turned it into a game of chess – as only he can with the heavyweights. He picked apart his opponent – who participated surprisingly smoothly at times – and counted on his point total.
Successfully. After 10 rounds the decision was left to the judges. The verdict: Fury won by split decision, meaning not all judges gave him the advantage.
The Gipsy King remains undefeated, but Ngannou seems to many to be the moral winner of this match.
“This was certainly not in the script,” Fury himself admitted afterwards. “Francis is a damn good fighter: strong, a solid punch and a much better boxer than we all estimated. He is a strange bird and I have a lot of respect for him, that was the case before the camp and that is the case now.”
2023-10-29 08:51:48
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