Francis Ngannou vs. Tyson Fury took place on October 28, 2023, in Saudi Arabia. Following his departure from the UFC in January 2023, it was unclear where Ngannou would go and what he would be doing by the end of the year. However, he was enjoying life by signing a contract with the PFL and earning an opportunity to fight arguably one of the best boxing heavyweights of this generation.
Stars from all across sports came to Saudi Arabia to watch Ngannou vs. Fury. Cristiano Ronaldo, Conor McGregor, Mike Tyson, and Kamaru Usman are just a few of the star names at the event.
The former UFC Heavyweight Champion started the fight in a dominating manner. He was throwing punches and rocking Fury like he probably had never before. In an extraordinary moment, Ngannou knocked Fury down in the third round. He joined a short list of fighters who achieved this feat. Ngannou even danced while Fury was down.
After the knockdown, however, there were no great moments in the fight. Both the boxers had a few punches struck well but none doing enough damage. Ngannou lasted the 10 rounds and many believed he had done enough to pick up a decision win. However, it was not to be for ‘The Predator’.
Fury vs. Ngannou final scorecard pic.twitter.com/YNtKasmaSp
— MMA Mania (@mmamania) October 29, 2023
Fury was announced as the winner via split decision. One judge scored 95-94 in favor of Ngannou, however, two other judges scored the fight 96-93 and 95-94 in favor of Fury. Former and current boxers were left divided in their opinions of the decision.
Boxing pundits react to Tyson Fury’s split decision win over Francis Ngannou
1. Mike Tyson
Former heavyweight champion, Mike Tyson, was in Ngannou’s corner on the night. He had helped Ngannou train for his boxing debut. Tyson called Fury’s performance “Weird”.
Many in the combat sports world believe Fury was not at the peak of his powers against Ngannou. Fury was “out of shape” and did not have a “serious camp”. Although that could be true, that is not an excuse. Fury entered the ring in a pro boxing bout and he was expected by everyone to treat it as one.
Mike Tyson reacts to Tyson Fury vs Francis Ngannou… pic.twitter.com/QZZq3gKJsv
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) October 29, 2023
Tyson proclaimed Ngannou as the “True champ of the evening” on his social media. However when he was asked if the decision was a “robbery”, Tyson claimed, “No. It wasn’t a robbery because everybody knows the outcome.”
2. Lennox Lewis
British former boxer Lenox Lewis slammed Fury for his performance against Ngannou. He claimed Fury lacked the discipline to win this fight properly. According to EuroSport, he said, “If you watch a fighter, as his mouth [Ngannou’s] opens you can tell he’s tired and he needs that oxygen…
“Tyson Fury didn’t punch to the body once, and I know he knows how to punch to the body, so that’s why I said he wasn’t 100%. He didn’t have that discipline enough to do what he needed to do to win this fight.”
I thought Fury won the fight, but then again, I’m also of the contingency that you have to TAKE the title from the champ. Aside from the knockdown, Ngannou just looked to counter all night. Call me old school but, that’s just not enough in my book unless u stop him.
— Lennox Lewis, CBE, CM (@LennoxLewis) October 29, 2023
However, Lewis did not think Ngannou did enough to win the fight. On X, Lewis wrote, “I thought Fury won the fight, but then again, I’m also of the contingency that you have to TAKE the title from the champ. Aside from the knockdown, Ngannou just looked to counter all night. Call me old school but, that’s just not enough in my book unless u stop him.”
Lewis, a former heavyweight champion, believes the right man took home the decision victory.
3. Chris Eubank Jr.
British boxer Chris Eubank Jr. was not impressed with Fury’s performance. The middleweight fighter who has won 33 of his 36 pro bouts wrote on X, “Watching from ringside I thought Ngannou won the fight. It was close but he was the aggressor, landed heavier shots & scored a knockdown. Fury deserved to lose after having so much trouble against a man who has never boxed before.”
Watching from ringside I thought Ngannou won the fight. It was close but he was the aggressor, landed heavier shots & scored a knockdown. Fury deserved to lose after having so much trouble against a man who has never boxed before… too much time filming Netflix specials not…
— Chris Eubank Jr (@ChrisEubankJr) October 28, 2023
Eubanks even slammed Fury claiming he was doing Netflix specials and not focusing on boxing. The middleweight boxer also claimed Fury using his elbow was a desperate move. He called Ngannou unlucky to not be able to pick up the win.
4. Carl Frampton
Northern Irish former boxer Carl Frampton also had his say on the Fury vs. Ngannou fight. According to EuroSport, Frampton believes Ngannou won the fight. He said, “In my eyes, he won the fight. I think Tyson maybe overlooked him, he struggled with his style. He was very awkward. And we all thought Francis was going to come and swing, he boxed beautifully at times. An unbelievable performance.”
The former boxer also slammed Fury for his performance which was “under par”. Frampton believes Fury overlooked Ngannou’s capabilities and did not prepare accordingly.
5. Canelo Alvarez
One of the biggest names in boxing at the moment, Canelo Alvarez was also on queue with his reaction for the Fury vs. Ngannou fight. Although there has been no reaction from him verbally, he took to X to make his feelings known.
Canelo Alvarez reacts to Tyson Fury vs Francis Ngannou… pic.twitter.com/KU65qTDprj
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) October 28, 2023
Alvarez’s reaction was pretty much speechless. He used an embarrassed/shocked emoji while reacting to Fury vs. Ngannou.
6. Billy Joe Saunders
British professional boxer Billy Joe Saunders also took to Instagram to give his reaction to Fury vs. Ngannou. He wrote, “To[o] many yes men in camp not switched on from word go. But he be switched on for the Ukrainian.”
Billy Joe Saunders reacts to Tyson Fury vs Francis Ngannou… pic.twitter.com/hkwUR7u4Jh
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) October 29, 2023
Saunders also hinted at Fury not being well-prepared for the big fight against Ngannou. However, he claimed Fury will be switched on for Oleksandr Usyk. Fury signed a fight against Usyk even before he fought Ngannou. It was seen as disrespectful by many and Ngannou did his job well enough to get the Usyk fight postponed.
7. Steve Bunce
According to Eurosport, British sports pundit Steve Bunce claimed, “Tyson Fury got away with one tonight, he really did.” He was disappointed with Fury’s performance and gave credit to Ngannou.
“His timing looked bad, his conditioning looked bad. He seemed to have run out of ideas in the last two rounds when he should have put his foot on the pedal, he coasted like he was eight rounds up.”
Bunce claimed Ngannou’s performance was extraordinary but Fury’s problems were self-inflicted. The Britisher could have avoided all of it if he had taken the fight seriously enough.
8. Anthony Yarde
Another British boxer Anthony Yarde was also quick to react to the fight. His reaction was in favor of one of the judges and against the other two.
Francis Ngannou just beat Tyson Fury
— Anthony Yarde (@mranthonyyarde) October 28, 2023
Yarde wrote on X, “Francis Ngannou just beat Tyson Fury.”
There was a huge mismatch in what many of the pros felt and what the judges of the fight felt. However, most were of the opinion that Fury was under-prepared and not serious enough. The British heavyweight will not be making such a mistake again.