31 October 2023 , 15:25
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Francis Ngannou crossed over to boxing for his fight against Tyson Fury and the Brit has now been told he should switch to MMA for a rematch.
Ngannou lost his ring debut against heavyweight champion Fury in a controversial split decision in Saudi Arabia which has divided opinions in the boxing world. The Cameroonian wasn't given a chance by many pundits but he rose to the occasion by dropping Fury and going all 10 rounds with him, only losing by a point on the judges' scorecards.
Fury repeatedly changed his tune on a potential MMA fight against Ngannou before they met in the ring, insisting he would beat him but also downplaying the cage rematch. UFC legend Dan Hardy, who is now the Director of Fighter Operations for PFL Europe, wants to see Fury challenge himself by lacing up 4oz gloves for a second fight against Ngannou.
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“If I was daydreaming he would be fighting Tyson Fury in MMA," Hardy told Mirror Fighting . "I would like to see Fury put on the small gloves and step into the smart cage but after potentially not winning a boxing match against him, I don’t think he’s going to give him any other skills that he can use."
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Talks for a fight between Ngannou and Deontay Wilder in boxing and MMA have already begun whilst Anthony Joshua is also seemingly interested in fighting the former UFC champion. Hardy believes a lot of heavyweights from other MMA promotions will be hoping to serve as the opponent for Ngannou's upcoming PFL debut, which is expected to take place in February or March.
“There are lots of good heavyweights on the planet, some are in other organisations. Time has passed since Ngannou left the UFC and time has passed since he announced that his opponent will get $2million. I know for sure there are fighters on other organisations' rosters that aren’t getting a fraction of that," Hardy added.
“Why not fight out of your contract and crossover? That’s what makes the most sense to me. If you’re a big puncher and a heavyweight star, getting paid some metre amount of money compared to what you’d make in an Ngannou fight, then fight out of your contract.”