Matchroom Promoter Eddie Hearn has revealed his interest in making a ‘Rumble In The Jungle 2’ bout for Anthony Joshua, after witnessing Francis Ngannou lose a split-decision to Tyson Fury in his boxing debut.
Ngannou outperformed everybody’s expectations whilst Fury underwhelmed, making for a close-fought contest that likely had ‘The Gypsy King’ and his team nervous when the scorecards were being announced.
Now, forty-nine years and one day after George Foreman lost the heavyweight title to Muhammad Ali in Zaire, Ngannou’s performance has inspired Hearn to draw up plans for a sequel to one of boxing’s most memorable nights.
In an interview with The MMA Hour, Hearn said that he was considering a contest in Africa with Cameroon’s Ngannou against the two-time heavyweight champion, Anthony Joshua, how is of Nigerian descent.
“It is difficult to say that he is not a world-class fighter, because I feel like he just beat Tyson Fury. We had a meeting, me and Francis, about five or six months ago and he asked me to make the Anthony Joshua fight. I went back to ‘AJ’ and said ‘look, I have met with Francis Ngannou, what a lovely gentleman. What do you think?’ and he went ‘no, I am not interested. I do not like the gimmick stuff, I just want to win the world heavyweight championship’.”
“Now I am looking at it, Francis Ngannou versus Anthony Joshua, perhaps in Africa as the Rumble In The Jungle 2, it is one of the biggest fights in the history of the sport. I promise you this, respect to Francis, but it is easy work for my man.”
The idea is in its infancy at this point, and is unlikely to take place any time soon due to ‘AJ’s’ plans to fight Deontay Wilder.
However, a fiftieth anniversary showdown next year could prove to be a fitting tribute to the legendary ‘Rumble In The Jungle.’