Francis Ngannou has a target on his back in the heavyweight division having put in a much better-than-expected showing against Tyson Fury despite being a boxing debutant.
And the seemingly evergreen Derek Chisora has thrown his name in the ring to ‘knock him out’ on December 23.
Across 10 rounds with ‘The Gypsy King’, the former MMA champion did well to hold his own, even scoring a knockdown in the third round that nobody saw coming.
In the wake of the split decision points win, Fury has had to push back his much anticipated undisputed fight with Oleksandr Usyk which was expected to go ahead on December 23 but will now happen next year.
Ngannou, who may take that date for himself, now has options. Speaking to Boxing Social, Chisora was asked if he would really be ready to fight the 37-year-old this year.
“Bro, a lion is always ready to eat. I’m ready.”
He then predicted how the fight would go.
“He’s a strong guy, it would be a great fight, but I would definitely knock that guy out.”
Finally, Chisora reflected on Ngannou’s performance against Fury.
“I was not surprised. Give Francis credit. He trained hard, he’s knocked people out in MMA, he’s done great, Give him credit, don’t take away from Francis.”
Following the fight, Ngannou has announced he earned more in that one bout than in all other UFC fights combined, so it will be no surprise to see him stick around boxing for a while longer.
