A grand evening ended in the capital of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh boxing, in which Tyson Fury won a controversial victory over former champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Francis Ngannou and undeservedly took the special belt of the World Boxing Council (WBC). The Sport correspondent talks about another refereeing scandal, which in the coming days will become the main topic in the world of martial arts.
It would seem that there is no intrigue… Let's take a huge Briton — a 35-year-old WBC world champion with no defeats in the professional ring (33-0-1), one of the best boxers of our time. And then we look at the smaller 37-year-old Frenchman of Cameroonian origin, who comes from MMA (17-3) and makes his debut in a new sport. Did anyone have any doubts about the outcome of the monetary confrontation?
By the way, we wrote about everything that preceded the next clash between boxing and mixed martial arts in the traditional announcement.
…but so many stars! As in the case of the Mayweather VS McGregor fight in August 2017, the meeting between Fury and Ngannou became a beautiful show. Promotion at the top level, Hollywood promo videos… And many famous guests who arrived at the invitation of the Saudis and added even more shine to the main boxing event of the fall.
Let's focus only on the most recognizable sports celebrities:
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The spotlight was on American rappers Eminem and Kanye West, as well as TikToker Xabi Laim and the same antagonist Hasbika singer Abdurozik.
Not the most dangerous on the planetLegendary ring announcer Michael Buffer announced the boxers, they walked royally to the ring, the anthems were played… And away we go! Fury immediately rushed towards the Predator, as if trying to finish everything in a matter of seconds. However, it didn’t work out: the total favorite failed miserably and barely escaped with his feet from the daring upstart from mixed martial arts.
The Gypsy King was noticeably wary of Ngannou and seemed to very quickly realize how much underestimation of his opponent affected the fight. Francis not only withstood all ten rounds — he confidently closed the distance, delivered more accurate blows (the Superman punch turned out to be a sight for sore eyes!) and did not even look like an athlete nervous about his first fight in the pros. Only compliments to him! Let’s face it: a guy from the Cameroonian wilderness ended up in boxing not only because of the impressive fees. His power, his strongest blow in the world deserved to go beyond the octagon.
We saw confirmation of this in the third round, when Fury was knocked down, and in the eighth, when the champion boxer somehow miraculously survived a hail of accurate hits. head.
Until recently it seemed like it was a performance. That Ngannou should, according to the script, put pressure on Fury in the first half of the meeting, and in the second, the Briton will “dismantle” the underdog through experience. But six rounds passed, the eighth three-minute period ended, and Tyson still did not turn on to the maximum. After the fact, we understand that there was no maximum: the boxer approached the hunt for the Predator completely unprepared and only thanks to the arbitrariness of the judges did he not lose everything he had.
And there was something to lose. Just imagine what a blow to one’s legacy would be caused by a defeat from an athlete who had never entered the ring? But the judges that evening “worked” as they should: the industry has no need to lose such a crazy asset, so a split decision of the judges (95-94,96-93, 94-95) Fury celebrated his triumph… But instead of an ovation, the still undefeated Tyson received a disapproving whistle.
The fate of the superfight with Usik The fight with the Ukrainian, who owns belts according to the World Boxing Association (WBA), the International Boxing Federation (IBF), the World Boxing Organization (WBO) and the International Boxing Organization (IBO), has not lost its relevance, although it has received reputational damage. Fury, beaten in Riyadh, will definitely not fight in December — the battle for the title of absolute world champion is postponed again. We hope that at the beginning of 2024, Tyson and Alexander will still identify the strongest heavyweight and finally put an end to the protracted story.
The “loser” Francis should definitely demand immediate revenge. A return to the Professional Fighters League (PFL), where Ngannou was sheltered after defecting from the UFC, will have to wait. Who is there to fight? The American promotion does not have names that would be worthy of appearing on the same poster as the Predator. Let the PFL bosses look for an opponent with hype outside of their own roster for now, while the star newcomer finishes things off with Fury.