A turn of events like no other in Saudi Arabia, as Tyson Fury is left stunned.
Tyson Fury was left simply stunned by Francis Ngannou who dropped him to the canvas but was narrowly beaten in Saudi Arabia. It was a sequence of events in the ring like rarely ever seen before, where the overwhelming favourite was forced to climb off the canvas to even survive.
Fury and Ngannou were squaring off in a mega-money event in Saudi Arabia where they were set to earn huge paydays for the boxing fight, which had been arranged after talks broke down over the WBC champion’s proposed clash with Oleksandr Usyk. The event was attended by a star-studded cast ringside including Cristiano Ronaldo and rapper Eminem, to see if Ngannou could capitalise in a huge opportunity on his boxing debut, against a heavyweight who many considered to be one of the greatest of all-time in the division.
It was expected to be a routine night for the ‘Gypsy King’ who came into the fight as the overwhelming favourite given his undefeated boxing record, and his superb skillset. Meanwhile, Ngannou had secured a huge opportunity on his first outing in the squared circle, after terminating his contract with the UFC after several years as an MMA champion.
Tensions between the pair were relatively low, but they did do a couple of shirtless face-offs in the fight week press conferences which showed the insane difference between their physiques. Ngannou is being trained by Mike Tyson, and it is fair to say fans were not confident of his chances after watching his training footage which many described as awful.
However, the power-punching challenger knew if he was able to somehow land a miracle punch, it could send huge shockwaves through the division. Ngannou was certainly confident going into contest, although the pair’s open workout pad footage also suggested it could be an uphill battle.
The ‘Gypsy King’ came out of the blocks very quickly with Fury boxing on the back foot as Ngannou clearly needed to close a significant distance early on. A small cut opened up for the WBC champion in the second round, as Ngannou tried to match his rival’s output through the middle rounds, and he genuinely looked quite impressive in an encounter with a far more experienced foe.
Fury incredibly was dropped to the canvas by the UFC champion who has made one of the most incredible moments in boxing history happen by sending the boxing star shockingly to the canvas. It sent a seismic shockwave through the arena, with the crowd suprisingly on the side of the huge underdog who was pulling off an incredible feat irrespective of the final result.
The overwhelming favourite had it all to do in the later championship rounds in an astonishing sequence of events, and Ngannou continued to pile on the pressure in the late rounds as he edged closer and closer to matching the night that was once held by Buster Douglas against Mike Tyson in one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.
The fans chanted ‘Francis’ as the contest stunningly went to the judges scorecards, and it was an incredible moment as Ngannou was rather unfortunate. The officials declared that Fury was the winner by the split decision, but came out of the event with his stocks hugely raised having sent his rival to the canvas and dominated spells throughout.
Source: Givemesport
