Francis Ngannou is one of the most powerful punchers in all combat sport, but does he really have a “puncher’s chance” at upsetting world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury in October?
Ngannou, a former UFC heavyweight champion, makes his professional boxing debut later this year, and he will do it in blockbuster fashion by stepping into the ring with the man many consider to be the beast heavyweight boxer on the planet, Fury.
The bookmakers Stake are giving the Cameroonian little chance of upsetting the heavyweight champion of the world, but Fury’s promoter, Frank Warren, has insisted it would be foolish or his fighter to underestimate the MMA star because “anything can happen in this game”.
Warren’s belief relies heavily on the incredible punching power that Ngannou displayed on his way to become the number one heavyweight fighter in all of mixed martial arts, but striking technique in MMA is very different to boxing.
We have seen some of the greatest strikers in MMA history – Anderson Silva and Conor McGregor – cross over into the boxing world, and neither was able to reproduce the stopping power that resulted in many stoppage wins inside the cage.
Could that be the case for Ngannou too?
One man who believes the former UFC fighter is capable of going against the grain is heavyweight contender Joe Joyce, who has sparred with both Fury and Ngannou in the past.
While he does expect Fury to be victorious on the night, Joyce agrees with Warren’s assessment that the WBC heavyweight champion cannot afford to “switch off” for a single moment when he shares the ring with Ngannou.
“Ngannou hits hard,” Joyce told Boxing News. “I had to get away from those power shots because he hits hard. He’s a big old unit, so Fury needs to be switched on. He should wipe the floor with him, but if he switches off for a split second then he could get nailed.”
One witness to Ngannou’s sparring sessions with Joyce claimed the former UFC champion made Joyce “look like Muhammad Ali”, and if that was the case that spells massive trouble for Ngannou because Fury is, of course, many levels above his fellow Briton.
Fury is no stranger to facing big-hitters too, having faced the man considered to be the biggest puncher in boxing, Deontay Wilder, on three occasions.
He was dropped by the ‘Bronze Bomber’ in the first meeting, but he dominated most of that fight and outclassed Wilder in the two other fights between the two men, so if he could do that type of number on an experienced boxer with devastating power, what could he do to a novice?
According to the latest odds, Fury is the clear-cut favourite. That question will be answered in October.
