Tag: Tyson Fury

Darren Till thinks there’s a 70 percent chance Tyson Fury competes in MMA

Darren Till, who recently trained with Tyson Fury, believes there’s a 70 percent chance we see the boxing star compete in MMA.

[autotag]Tyson Fury[/autotag] made headlines when he announced that he’d like to make the transition to MMA, and [autotag]Darren Till[/autotag] believes he’s pretty serious about it.

The heavyweight boxing world champion has recently dabbled in just about every part of the combat sports world, with his recent appearance at a WWE event, as well as his trip to Liverpool, to train with UFC middleweight contender, Till at Team Kaobon.

And Till, who was impressed by Fury during the training session, thinks there’s a pretty big chance we’ll actually see Fury compete in MMA someday.

“I think it’s about a 70-30,” Till said in an interview with BT Sport. “Seventy yeah, thirty no, we’ve got to remember boxing to MMA is very different as well with a lot of things, especially pay. He’s in WWE, he’s making a lot of money there, he’s making a lot of money – he’s a top, top three heavyweight. I’d love to see it, I’d love to see it for the entertainment factor. It’s all about the entertainment and he’d probably do well, whoever he gets.”

Till ran Fury through an intense training session which included hitting pads, wrestling techniques and more, and Till says he was surprised at how committed Fury was to the whole thing.

“I had a terrific chat with him after we trained but I thought to myself, he’s going to come down, he’s going to lay in a few techniques and that’s it,” Till said. “He said to me when we were starting, I’ve come to train you know. I was like what do you mean, he was like I’ve come to train hard, and I was like ok, let’s crack on and I had just fought, even my knee was a bit niggling.”

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“Collin was like give a proper training session, make sure he knows so I said Tyson, I’m going to teach you about what I think you need for MMA. If you’re considering this, I’ll teach you what I think you need so we started off, we ran around, we done warmups that coach Mike, the wrestler always teaches us and then I got him involved in some sprawls, some shadow boxing and then we went straight into sparring, pads.”

Fury had initially thrown a few names such as UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic, Francis Ngannou and Curtis Blaydes as potential opponents, and all three automatically agreed to fight the boxing superstar. But with Fury’s rematch with Deontay Wilder imminent, we may have to wait for Fury’s octagon debut.

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Good, bad, worse: Give Deontay Wilder respect he deserves

Deontay Wilder deserves credit for what he has accomplished even if you’re critical of his boxing skills.

GOOD

One tweet seemed to represent the anti-Deontay Wilder sect after the heavyweight titleholder’s chilling one-punch knockout of Luis Ortiz on Saturday night in Las Vegas: “Wilder is still pure (excrement).”

What does Wilder have to do to cease being excrement?

The Tweeter obviously was referring to Wilder’s perceived lack of elite boxing ability. What about results? Wilder has had 43 heavyweight fights. He has ended 41 of them early, including Bermane Stiverne in their rematch. The only opponent he hasn’t knocked out is Tyson Fury, with whom he drew last December.

Isn’t the objective to win? The man is unbeaten and has successfully defended his title 10 times, which ties Muhammad Ali at No. 5 on the all-time list in a single heavyweight reign. He also moved into No. 7 for total defenses.

And isn’t a second goal to entertain the spectators? The fans love spectacular knockouts and Wilder delivers … again and again and again.

Wilder will never be a great technician. He admits it. If that is something you require to enjoy boxing, then Wilder isn’t for you. If you admire a fighter who wins consistently and provides one thrill after another, enjoy Wilder while you can. He’s 34.

And for the record: He certainly is a good enough boxer. He has the ability to set up his big shots, to position himself at the right distance, to recognize an opportunity and to unload at just the right time. That takes skill.

Wilder said at the post-fight news conference: “I deserve respect.” Yes, he does.

 

BAD

Deontay Wilder’s knockouts should be celebrated on a grander scale than they are now. Ryan Hafey / Premier Boxing Champions

The reported attendance at the Wilder-Ortiz card was 10,000-plus. The capacity at the MGM Grand Garden Arena is around 17,000. And if I had to guess the number of domestic pay-per-view buys it will have generated, I’d say around 350,000.

Those aren’t impressive numbers, which is not a good commentary on Wilder’s popularity.

What’s going on? One theory is that this isn’t a good time of year, with the holidays around the corner, to stage a major fight. That makes sense. Competition from the NFL, college football and the NBA doesn’t help, obviously.

Frankly, fighters aren’t promoted like they used to be. And, who knows, maybe he’d resonate with more sports fans if he fought more often. That just isn’t how it’s done these days.

What’s the point? All of the above is a shame given the excitement Wilder generates. His knockouts should be celebrated in a way that Mike Tyson’s once were because they’re every bit as dramatic.

Again, though, these are different times. Boxing, while perfectly healthy, isn’t as mainstream as it once was. Even a dominating heavyweight champion, as Wilder is becoming, can largely fly under the radar in today’s environment.

Perhaps Wilder will gain more and more traction across a larger landscape with every opponent he puts to sleep going forward. In the meantime, those who are paying attention now are having a blast.

 

WORSE

Brandon Figueroa (left) said Julio Ceja’s extra weight was a factor in their fight. Ryan Hafey / Premier Boxing Champions

The word knowledgeable people use is “unprofessional.”

Luis Nery came in a pound overweight for his scheduled fight against Emmanuel Rodriguez on the Wilder-Ortiz undercard. He was given time to lose the pound but reportedly refused to make an attempt. He subsequently offered Rodriguez money and a rehydration limit but Rodriguez decided that danger exceeded reward and the fight was canceled.

Nery also has failed to make weight in the past. Suggestion: Move up a division.

Julio Ceja failed to make the junior featherweight limit by a whopping 4½ pounds, which technically made him a junior lightweight, for his fight with Brandon Figueroa. Still, Figueroa agreed to go ahead with the fight.

Perhaps that was a mistake. Ceja was an immovable object in the fight, which ended in a controversial draw. Afterward, Figueroa said Ceja’s extra weight was a factor.

“I basically fought a person in a weight class above mine tonight,” Figueroa said. “I’m pretty sure if he weighed 122, it wouldn’t even be a close fight. We have to run the rematch back but he better make the weight.”

Fighters have always pushed the limit on weight, believing they’ll have an edge over their opponents the lower they go. That’s not going to change. Fighters will continue to miss weight.

That said, it might be good idea to follow this plan: One, make weight. Two, in the event that doesn’t happen, try to make the limit within the extra time allotted. And, three, if that doesn’t work, make a reasonable offer when negotiating to step into the ring overweight.

In other words, be professional.

 

Fury trainer Ben Davison: ’Luis Ortiz is fantastic but he’s not Tyson Fury’

Ben Davison, the trainer of Tyson Fury, admires Deontay Wilder KO victim Luis Ortiz but says his fighter is at another level.

LAS VEGAS – It didn’t take long for the focus to shift to Tyson Fury, at least for a while.

Ben Davison, Fury’s trainer, witnessed Deontay Wilder’s one-punch knockout of Luis Ortiz first hand Saturday night at the MGM Grand and was asked by Sky Sports afterward what he thought.

Fury survived a hellacious knockdown in the final round to go the distance with Wilder in a controversial draw last December. They are tentatively scheduled to meet again in February.

“I’ve said before: Luis Ortiz is a fantastic fighter but he’s not Tyson Fury,” Davison said. “I also learned that he was a different man fight week to what he was to when he fought Tyson. Tyson 100 per cent got under his skin. I definitely saw that in there, which is pretty understandable. Pressure of a big fight around the corner affected him.”

He went on: “How do you (beat Wilder)? I’m not going to say my ideas on how you would do it, but it’s certainly not what Luis Ortiz did here tonight.”

Wilder was then asked to respond to Davison’s comments. He wasn’t happy.

“Every time a person fights, we see different holes and different things,” Wilder said. “You’re not going to be perfect in a fight, no one is. I hope he took notes and carries it back to his camp because I’m going to knock Fury out like I did the first time. Point blank, period. I’m not worried about what anyone says. I’m proven.

“If they were so sure about certain things and what they’d seen, he would have took the rematch immediately. I’m not running round doing a 100,000 things (like Fury). I was the one who demanded the rematch after a controversial decision.

“I’m the one fighting the best in the division. There’s no other fighters taking risks in any fights.”

That’s just a taste of the pre-fight hype. Stand by.

Deontay Wilder: ‘I am the hardest puncher in boxing history – period’

Deontay Wilder said his one-punch knockout of Luis Ortiz on Saturday was further evidence that’s he’s the biggest puncher ever.

LAS VEGAS – Heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder made a bold statement after his breathtaking one-punch knockout of Luis Ortiz in their rematch Saturday at the MGM Grand: “I am the hardest … puncher in boxing history. Period.”

Of course, that can’t be quantified but he definitely is building a case for himself.

Start with his knockout ratio: 42 victims, 41 knockouts. That means Wilder (42-0-1) has scored a knockout in 98 percent his victories, an all-time record. Earnie Shavers, George Foreman and Joe Louis, who are often cited as the biggest punchers of all time, had KO percentages of 92, 89 and 79 percent, respectively.

One could argue that those legends stopped better opposition but it’s not as if Wilder is avoiding anyone. Ortiz is a good fighter and Wilder has now stopped him twice. Also, a rematch with Tyson Fury, who went the distance with Wilder, and possible showdowns with Andy Ruiz Jr. and Anthony Joshua await.

Luis Ortiz tried but failed to gather himself after Deontay Wilder landed his big shot. AP Photo / John Locher

And the way Wilder has tended to end fights – with one monstrous shot – stays with those who witness it, enhancing Wilder’s reputation as a knockout artist. The final blows seem to come out of nowhere, which makes them particularly chilling.

That was the case on Saturday. The possibility of a big shot is always there for Wilder but he gave no indication that it was coming against Ortiz, who was leading on all three cards (59-55, 59-55 and 58-56) after six rounds.

Everyone watching the Deontay Wilder-Luis Ortiz fight had to be thinking that same thing at that point: Wilder was digging himself into a deep hole. If he couldn’t stop Ortiz, he was in danger of losing a decision.

One person not concerned? Wilder.

“To be honest I never worry about if I’m losing a fight or not,” he said. “I’m blessed with something that these other guys aren’t blessed with, that’s tremendous power. I know that when I hit guys, it hurts them. When you have power like I have, you’re not worried about if you’re winning rounds or not. I don’t want that to be in my mind … because I don’t want my mind to be cloudy thinking about rounds.

“Most of the time these guys win rounds on me anyway. I know that sooner or later it’s going to come. And when it comes, good night.”

As we know, the scorecards were irrelevant in the end. Wilder positioned himself as arm’s length in the final seconds of Round 7, saw his opening and pulled the trigger. Fight over.

Good, bad, worse: Heavyweight heaven coming up

Four of the five best heavyweights will be in action within a two-week period. And they’re not fighting stiffs; they’re facing each other.

GOOD

Four of the five best heavyweights will be in action within a two-week period. And they’re not fighting stiffs; they’re tangling with each other. How often does that happen?

On Saturday, Deontay Wilder defends his title in a rematch with Luis Ortiz in Las Vegas. On Dec. 7, Andy Ruiz Jr. defends his belts in a second fight with Anthony Joshua in Saudi Arabia. And Tyson Fury, the fifth heavyweight, is in the wings waiting to see how it all plays out.

If you like heavyweight boxing, this is good.

These are tough assignments for all involved, at least on paper. Wilder survived a scare in the seventh round to stop Ortiz in Round 10 in March of last year. Ortiz clearly has the ability to give Wilder trouble – we’ve seen it – and the 40-year-old Cuban seems to understand that this might be his last chance to strike it rich. By all accounts, he’s remarkably fit.

I think Wilder, with the experience of the first fight in the bank, will win again but to say that Ortiz is a live underdog is an understatement.

Many questions surround the Ruiz-Joshua rematch. Ruiz stunned the boxing world by stopping Joshua in seven rounds in June. And it wasn’t a lucky punch that did the trick. Joshua went down four times and seemed to give up in the end, a psychologically damaging fate from which it’s difficult to bounce back.

Should Joshua have taken an interim fight to rebuild his confidence? Will he simply make necessary adjustments and reclaim his rightful position in the heavyweight hierarchy? Does Ruiz have Joshua’s number?

Fascinating stuff.

 

BAD

Please: Don’t subject us to more of this rubbish. Jayne Kamin-Oncea / Getty Images

One main event between YouTubers was enough, even if it did increase DAZN subscriptions and attract some new fans to boxing, as those involved insist. Now promoter Eddie Hearn is hinting that there might be more of that nonsense to come

Ugh.

Hearn had told BoxingScene.com before the KSI-Logan Paul “fight” that he didn’t expect to stage more silly spectacles. Now, after what Hearn and Co. perceive to be a success, they apparently are open to more fights involving YouTubers or other non-boxers on otherwise legitimate cards.

Hearn told BoxingScene: “What we can’t do is turn it into a circus and have random people fighting each other all over the place.”

Guess what: KSI and Logan Paul are random people, at least to boxing fans in general. And, if what Hearn seems to be suggesting becomes reality, we could be headed in the direction of them “fighting each other all over the place.”

The good news is that Hearn said he doesn’t expect YouTubers to headline a boxing card again, although I won’t be surprised if KSI-Paul III ends up as a main event. An exhibition low on the card is much more palatable.

Here’s a better idea, though: Have separate cards featuring only internet personalities and the like. You’ll still make money. You’ll still attract some non-fans to the sport. And you’ll give true fans the ability to opt out if they wish to do so.

I guess I’m a purist. I still cringe when I think of Devin Haney and Billy Joe Saunders fighting on the KSI-Paul undercard. And I know I’m not alone.

 

WORSE

Did Joe George (left) get enough done against Marcos Escudero to deserve his victory? Dave Mandel / Showtime

I don’t know whether this is bad, worse or something else.

The 10-round light heavyweight fight between Joe George and Marcos Escudero on the ShoBox card Friday in Iowa produced yet another controversial decision, with George winning a split decision even though he was clearly outworked by Escudero.

The Showtime commentators gave George only a few rounds. And I scored it 97-93 for Escudero, seven rounds to three. The official scores? 97-93 and 97-94 for George, 96-94 for Escudero.

I’m still scratching my head.

My instinct is to bemoan yet another example of poor scoring but I’m not so sure I have it right. George (10-0, 6 knockouts) seemed to spend half the fight covering up with his back against the ropes, taking far more punches from Escudero (10-1, 9 KOs) than he was delivering.

Many of Escudero’s shots hit gloves and arms, which means they weren’t scoring blows, but plenty of them did hit legitimate targets. Or so it seemed. I wasn’t at ringside, as the judges were.

I presume that the two judges who scored the fight in George’s favor – Bob LaFratte and Carlos Sucre – saw those exchanges differently. They must’ve thought that George blocked the vast majority of those punches. And I suppose one could argue that the winner landed the bigger blows when he didn’t open up and let his hands go.

I don’t know, though. It sure felt from watching on TV as if Escudero won that fight.

 

Deontay Wilder asks Luis Ortiz to clarify remarks about champ’s tactics

Deontay Wilder is asking Luis Ortiz to clarify remarks Ortiz made about Wilder tactics that “should be illegal and borderline criminal.’’

Deontay Wilder is asking Luis Ortiz to clarify remarks Ortiz made through a translator about Wilder tactics that “should be illegal and borderline criminal.’’

Wilder was surprised to hear what Ortiz said Tuesday during a conference call for their heavyweight rematch on Nov. 23 at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand.

“I’ve never heard of that, so I’m going to think he’s being sarcastic,’’ Wilder said. “The only thing that’s criminal is me hitting people with the right hand and almost killing them.’’

Through his translator, Ortiz, a Cuban, questioned the punches thrown by Wilder, who knocked him down three times – once in the fifth round and twice in the 10th – in a Wilder victory on March 3, 2018 in Brooklyn. Ortiz is quoted as saying that Wilder threw clubbing blows on the top of the head. He also said Wilder used the inside of his hands in delivering his punches.

“Quite frankly, it should be illegal and borderline criminal,’’ Ortiz said. “You never know what Wilder is going to do and how he approaches his fights.’’

Wilder (41-0-1, 40 knockouts), usually a trash-talker, has praised Ortiz (31-1, 26 KOs) since the rematch was announced in mid-September.

“He needs to clarify that for me before I take it the wrong way,’’ said Wilder, who agreed to a dangerous rematch that some say puts his projected sequel with Tyson Fury in February in jeopardy. “We know when I get mad, it’s over with.

“Right now, I’m neutral with him. I’m very respectful. He should thank God that I blessed him a second time when I didn’t have to before I take this the wrong way and really want to beat his ass.’’

Tyson Fury accepts challenge of UFC’s Stipe Miocic: ‘after I get Wilder out of the way?

Tyson Fury, at least in words, has accepted UFC’s Stipe Miocic’s offer for a crossover fight.

Tyson Fury has a lot on his plate these days.

That apparently includes the possibility of a crossover fight with Stipe Miocic, the UFC heavyweight champion who recently stated his desire to fight the “Gypsy King.” Miocic told ESPN that he would rather face Fury than engage in a third fight with former UFC titleholder Daniel Cormier.

In a statement released on Wednesday, Fury, it seems, has taken up Miocic on his offer.

“Stipe says he wants to box me. That would be a good fight, for sure,” Fury told his management company MTK Global.

Fury, of course, has a pretty packed schedule. He is tentatively scheduled to face Wilder in February if the American titleholder defeats Luis Ortiz in their November 23 rematch.

“After I get Wilder out of the way, I’ll fight Stipe in a boxing match if he wants it,” Fury continued. “It would be a big crossover fight like Mayweather and McGregor.”

Fury (29-0-1, 20 knockouts) is no stranger to the crossover fight, having already stepped into the professional wrestling universe against the WWE’s Braun Strowman in October. Most recently, Fury was shown on a video throwing knees and elbows with UFC middleweight champion Darren Till in the gym. That caught Miocic’s attention on Twitter.

Fury, for his part, relishes the idea of taking on the UFC stars.

“I’m open to (fighting Miocic), so he should come and see me,” Fury said. “It would be the same outcome for any of (the UFC fighters): They’ll all get smashed.”

 

Tyson Fury answers Stipe Miocic’s challenge: ‘after I get Wilder out of the way’

Heavyweight boxer Tyson Fury said he’d be willing to fight UFC’s Stipe Miocic after Fury’s rematch with Deontay Wilder.

Undefeated former heavyweight boxing champion of the world Tyson Fury has accepted Stipe Miocic’s challenge and says he’d be happy to face the UFC heavyweight champ – inside the boxing ring.

Miocic (19-3 MMA, 13-3 UFC) told ESPN on Monday that he had turned his sights from a trilogy bout with Daniel Cormier to a matchup with Fury (29-0-1 boxing), saying he’d be interested to face the 6-foot-9 Brit in the octagon or the boxing ring.

And, in an interview conducted by his management team MTK Global, Fury formally accepted the challenge and said he’d happily face Miocic in a boxing match a little further down the line, once he has dealt with his unfinished business with heavyweight titleholder Deontay Wilder.

“Stipe says he wants to box me; that would be a good fight for sure,” Fury said. “After I get Wilder out of the way, I’ll fight Stipe in a boxing match if he wants it. It would be a big crossover fight like Mayweather and McGregor.”

Fury has a return to the ring penciled in for February 2020 and hopes that Wilder will agree to face him in a rematch of their epic December 2018 clash that finished in a hotly-disputed split draw in Los Angeles. But, once Fury has faced “The Bronze Bomber” again, he said he’d be interested in a potential matchup with Miocic.

“I’m open to that fight, so he should come and see me,” Fury said. “It would be the same outcome for any of them: They’ll all get smashed.”

Fury’s comments made clear that he’d be looking to face Miocic under boxing rules, rather than the Unified Rules of MMA, but that doesn’t mean Fury has no respect for the sport. Indeed, he spent some time cracking the pads as he worked his elbows, knees and sprawls with Darren Till at the Liverpudlian’s training base at Kaobon Gym last week.

“It was exciting training with Darren Till and we get on like a house on fire,” said Fury, who shares the same management company with Till.

“He put me through a hard training session, and it was really good.”

MMA stars know where to find money … against boxing counterparts

In recent days, the UFC’s Jorge Masvidal and Stipe Miocic have expressed interest in facing Canelo Alvarez and Tyson Fury, respectively.

MMA stars may get the earlier start times, but it’s the top boxers who take home the more gratifying paychecks.

Canelo Alvarez, boxing’s biggest attraction, was reduced to playing second fiddle in the combat sports world when DAZN decided to delay his title fight against Sergey Kovalev on Nov. 2 to accommodate the UFC main event between Jorge Masvidal and Nate Diaz that took place that same evening.

Critics ripped the streaming service for making it appear as though boxing was taking a backseat to the UFC. However, in at least one respect, it’s the other way around.

In the days after his technical decision over Diaz, Masvidal has been busy beating the drums for … an Alvarez fight. And Stipe Miocic, the UFC heavyweight champion, has floated the idea of reneging on a third fight with Daniel Cormier to face heavyweight contender Tyson Fury in a boxing match.

Notice a pattern yet?

It’s always the mixed martial artist clamoring to fight the boxer and seldom vice versa. For good reason. As has been well documented, the top boxers earn far more than their UFC counterparts. And there’s something about the crossover appeal that gets people to take out their wallets, as the 2017 pay-per-view bonanza – all 4.3 million buys – between UFC’s Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather demonstrated.

If you’re Masvidal, why not push for an Alvarez fight? Crazier things have happened. A Canelo fight would represent by far the most lucrative opportunity in his career. Masvidal discussed a potential Canelo fight on the Dan Le Batard show on Tuesday.

“If he was to come to the MMA, it wouldn’t be a challenge,” Masvidal said. “I would throw 10,000 left high kicks and he hasn’t thrown one. It’s kind of the same thing in boxing, where if I’ve thrown a million jabs, he’s thrown 10 million because that’s all his focus is on, boxing.

“That being said, there’s still an element where I could put his ass to sleep. I’m actually bigger even though I may not hit harder, but definitely bigger, and I consider myself 10 times the athlete he is, just because of MMA in general, all the strength, speed that we have to generate. … I feel I could hurt this dude.”

Of course, Masvidal is dreaming … of the money.

 

Francis Ngannou happy to fight Tyson Fury in MMA, then return favor in boxing

Francis Ngannou is down to fight Tyson Fury in both the octagon and the boxing ring.

[autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] is more than willing to fight [autotag]Tyson Fury[/autotag] in the octagon and the boxing ring.

Yes, that’s “and,” not “or.”

With boxing world champion Fury appearing to be dead set on making an eventual move to MMA, he proceeded to call out several heavyweights, including Ngannou, who wasted little time with his response.

“I’m like man, I don’t have a fight and anyways I was about to come find you in your territory, so if you come to my own, that would be great,” Ngannou told MMA Junkie. “And I can return you the favor because I want to cross to boxing sometime soon. That’s exactly how I feel right now.”

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Ngannou (14-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC), whose initial dream was to become a pro boxer, is very familiar with the the sweet science. His boxing background has translated very well into his MMA career, with 10 knockouts on his resume, taking out his last three opponents in the first round.

And while he’s been eager to get his next UFC fight, Ngannou says naturally, he’d be interested in facing Fury, since he comes from boxing roots himself.

“Maybe the frustration, the situation is teasing me, but my background is boxing,” Ngannou said. “I was going to do boxing before I discovered MMA. My dream was always boxing, so I took MMA because it was the opportunity that came to me, and I just needed it.”

Fury has already made his first step towards MMA, when he paid a visit to middleweight contender Darren Till at Team Kaobon, and was seen hitting pads, and drilling some takedown defense with Till during the training session.

“I think Fury is taking himself seriously,” Ngannou said. “I think he’s very serious about when he said he’s going to move to the octagon. He likes the show. He’s a showtime guy – you can see when he walks out in the fight. You can see like recently he was in WWE, so I think at this point in his life, he’s just there for the show.”

“Once again the video is just the proof of what I’m saying: He’s serious,” Ngannou added. “He’s taking himself really serious, and I wonder if he has been training. I think he’s been training on the ground you know, like in secret because he seems to be liking it, to like MMA, which many people do, and they just do it in secret, but now he just came out with his passion and obviously the intention to, actually.”

Ngannou, himself, has also been taking a potential fight with Fury seriously as he was seen hanging out with boxing legend and former heavyweight champ Mike Tyson, who he said has agreed to coach him if he were to fight Fury.

“Mike Tyson is a very spiritual guy,” Ngannou said. “I feel like when he was talking, I can recognize myself about almost all what he said. Very wise way to see life, he understands how life works. I mean not only sports, but life. It was very great, very interesting,”

UFC heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic was also on the list of heavyweights that Fury called out, as he recently said that he’d actually rather fight Fury over a Daniel Cormier trilogy.

But Ngannou believes Miocic only started entertaining the idea, when he saw the back and forth between him and Fury, and the progress they’ve made towards a potential fight.

“I’m not having a problem for Stipe to fight somebody,” Ngannou said. “I just want to fight, and I want the title shot. Maybe if it’s happening, him fighting Tyson Fury, and they let me fight for the belt, let’s go, but I think Stipe is reacting like that now because how Tyson Fury and I have been going back and forth.”

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