Tyson Fury hijacked the ‘Knockout Chaos’ press conference – and got into a war of words with Francis Ngannou.
Fury was sitting in the front row to watch Anthony Joshua and Ngannou talk up their Friday night fight in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
It all kicked off when Ngannou claimed to be looking forward to claiming ‘another win’ in the future over Fury, who he dropped in his boxing debut last October.
Ngannou, the former UFC heavyweight champion, ultimately fell to a split decision defeat, but many fans thought he did enough to pull off the biggest upset in boxing history.
“I am really intending to gain a lot of major victories like this,” Ngannou said about his upcoming fight with Joshua.
“One more over Tyson, because I have the first one over him and I’m intending to have the second one. And he’s been b******* about it, which is true.”
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Fury began shouting from the crowd, but it wasn’t clear what he said.
Ngannou heard him just fine though and responded with trash talk.
He added: “You’re going to sleep in the [ring] again and I’m going to wipe the ring with your a*** again.
“I wiped the ring with your a***, there was blood in the ring.”
Fury, who looked increasingly annoyed by the exchange, continued to shout from his seat before Ngannou let him know how a real fight between them would play out.
“Your only chance is in the boxing ring with the boxing rules,” he said.
“When you step out of the ring you better stay five metres away before I stop your s*** because if I lose it you’re going to have a really bad time, my friend.
“Respect the fact that boxing is protecting your a*** and the rules of boxing are protecting you all. Without that, you are nothing.
“I’d beat you every day, twice on Sunday.”
Fury, who next faces Oleksandr Usyk on May 18 for the undisputed heavyweight crown, had confronted Ngannou earlier in the week in Saudi Arabia after the former UFC star branded him a ‘coward’.
There was less tension between the two men who will actually fight this weekend, with Joshua and Ngannou remaining respectful towards each other.
Joshua insisted he will do his talking in the ring, saying with a smile: “All will be revealed. Straight up war, relentlessness, good fight, stay tuned.”
Ngannou, meanwhile, admitted he didn’t disagree with the claim from Joshua’s trainer, Ben Davison, that he may struggle over the ten-round distance given his lack of boxing experience.
“Yes I’ll struggle to do 10 rounds, if you don’t struggle to do 10 rounds you aren’t human,” he said. “I have no problem with that, because it’s a learning process and I’m here to learn.
“In that fight against Fury I was questioning myself like ‘what will I be like?’. I did struggle, but I think he struggled as well – maybe more!
“I haven’t shocked the world yet. I’m still in the factory, training, building and learning and when I really get it that’s when the world will be shocked.
“I’m still learning the sport I’ve loved my entire life. It’s just now I’m getting the experience. I trust the process and my team.
“It’s going to pay off. Every space there is an opening I’m going to hit! I’m not going to leave any stone unturned.”
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
