Francis Ngannou understands the intense skepticism from boxing fans regarding his chances of upsetting Tyson Fury on Saturday night.
Most boxing enthusiasts expect very little from a former UFC heavyweight champion who will make his debut against an elite-level opponent. Ngannou, though big and strong, hasn’t exactly altered the opinions of non-believers with what he has displayed during workouts for his 10-round fight against boxing’s best heavyweight of this era.
Ngannou has converted countless skeptics, however, throughout his journey from Cameroon to making a $10 million purse for fighting Fury at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This challenge, according to Ngannou, will be no different.
“Let’s be honest, I haven’t gained any respect from [the] boxing community,” Ngannou told co-hosts Dev Sahni and Andy Clarke during an open workout Wednesday night in Riyadh. “So, I’m not expecting anybody to respect me. I think I need to gain my own respect, to claim my own respect. You know, respect is not given. You don’t just walk around and demand for people to respect you for no reason. I think respect is earned. And I’m gonna earn my respect, whether it’s in the boxing community or life in general. That’s my goal, to earn my respect.”
The 6-foot-9, 270-pound Fury is listed by FanDuel sportsbook as a 20-1 favorite to defeat Ngannou in a pay-per-view main event that won’t count on either fighter’s record. The 6-foot-4, 258-pound Ngannou nonetheless isn’t the least bit concerned with what oddsmakers or fans think of his ability to land the type of right hand with which he’ll need to connect to affect Fury, whose athleticism, experience, movement and skill have rendered Ngannou such a huge underdog.
“People have a right to think [what they want],” Ngannou said. “There’s 8 billion people on Earth, so you have to understand there’s 8 billion opinions. But there’s only one opinion that’s gonna matter there – it’s mine. So, people have a right to think. You can’t control people [from] having their opinion, you know? Yes, I’m going to fight. If that big shot comes, yes. If it doesn’t come, I really intend to fight properly.”
TNT Sports Box Office will distribute the bout between Fury, 35, and Ngannou, 37, as the main event of a five-fight pay-per-view show in the United Kingdom (£21.95; 7 p.m. BST). ESPN will offer Fury-Ngannou as the headliner of a pay-per-view event in the United States ($79.99; 2 p.m. EDT; 11 a.m. PDT).
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.