Francis Ngannou steps into the boxing ring for the first time to face World Heavyweight Champion, Tyson Fury.
Although a big power-puncher in the UFC, the general consensus is that Ngannou’s fight with Fury will go the same way as high-profile crossovers in the past – the boxer will win comfortably.
And he believes he may have more than just the odds stacked against him.
Speaking to Joe Rogan, the MMA man echoed a theory first put out there by Deontay Wilder, who claimed Fury had been fighting with tampered gloves.
“He’s very tricky with his glove. I think he cheats. We are talking about it with the team, and they’re like, ‘Oh, there’s the UK commission with the gloves. I’m like, ‘Bro, we’re going to get there, we need every glove to be checked.’”
“You don’t tell me about this commission, ‘Oh, the gloves get to be checked. If you want us to fight bare hands, bare-knuckle, let’s go bare-knuckle. But don’t give me 10-ounce gloves and wear 8-ounce or 6-ounce gloves because he has no protection. No.”
The accusation has been largely debunked, and no official or governing body has said anything to lend any credibility to it. Still, Ngannou persisted, claiming that more than just Wilder had complained after facing Fury.
“But his opponent complains about his gloves. It might not be [true], but we have to check that. … I think we have nothing to lose by double-checking, because it’s been more than once that people talk about his gloves, and even his opponents.”
“In the boxing world, you have to worry about everything. If somebody says something in boxing, you better double-check.”
Fury and Ngannou lace up and face off on October 28 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.