Tyson Fury gets lucky escape vs Francis Ngannou as he wins split decision
Tyson Fury has ‘no doubt’ he will knock out former UFC fighter Francis Ngannou
Tyson Fury breathed a huge sigh of relief as he overcame faces Francis Ngannou in a mammoth combat crossover in Saudi Arabia. The unbeaten Gypsy King headed into the heavyweight encounter as big favourite but was stunned by the MMA star, who showed his boxing skills from the off in the 10-round bout.
Fury, 35, who weighed in at 19st 8lbs, was knocked down by Ngannou in the third roun after earlier also causing bleeding to his forehead. Ngannou appeared to take control of the fight, and arguably one of the biggest ever upsets looked to be on the cards.
Fury faced a race against time to swing the fight back in his favour but Ngannou kept his rival at bay, and the Gypsy King faced an extremely nervous wait to see how the judges scored the fight.
But fortunately for Fury, he won the fight via split decision with Ngannou looking very disappointed when the result was officially confirmed. After the bout, the Brit labelled it ‘probably one of my toughest fights in the last 10 years’.
You can relive the live action right below with Express Sport’s blog on the thrilling showdown.
KEY EVENTS
Fury details Usyk plans
Fury seems a bit in disbelief following his victory.
But after surviving the biggest of scares, Fury and Usyk have gone head-to-head in the ring, with a fight next on the cards.
Fury: “It’s been going on a long time, let’s do the fight – over here, for all the belts, the undisputed title of the world. Listen, it’s not up to me; we’d go now. These guys will sort it out, it’ll be my next fight guaranteed.”
Usyk: “Let’s go. I’m going to be fighting him, amazing. It’s a big fight, the whole world wants this fight.”
TYSON FURY WINS!
Tyson Fury has had a lucky escape as the judges rule it in his favour.
Judges ruled it 94-95, 96-93, 95-94. And Ngannou will feel hard done by…
We go to the scorecards
We go to the scorecards and it’s a very anxious wait for Fury.
Fury needs the knockout!
Fury needs to go for it now in the tenth and final round. He stays patient at the beginning but Ngannou doesn’t allow him to get near.
He throws a big left but it doesn’t land on the Cameroonian star.
This could arguably be one of the biggest upsets ever…
One round remaining
Ngannou with a great right hook on Fury. The Brit then misses with a jab and then lands a right hand.
Ngannou seems in a good position still, with time ticking down…
Fury running out of time
Tyson Fury is running out of time to turn this fight around with just two rounds left.
Fury is digging deep against Ngannou, who has certainly surprised the British heavyweight champ.
The thriller continues
Fury continues his good work as he looks to fight back with another good jab on Ngannou, who then misses with his own.
The UFC star then misses with an uppercut and leans on Fury on the ropes before the ref separates the fighters.
Ngannou fancying his chances
Round five seens Ngannou rush forward to get at Fury. The Brit starts to feint but needs to get some more jabs in of his own.
He then finally gets a good combo together which causes trouble for Ngannou in round five.
Ngannou looking so relaxed
Who would have thought this when we started? Ngannou looks very settled as he looks to pull off a stunning upset against the Gypsy King.
In round four, and Fury after not really thrown anything of note, lands a left then right hook. He comes back into the fight slightly…
Fury on the canvas!
Ngannou is seen laughing in Fury’s face as the Gypsy King falls to the canvas.
He just about beats the count, with Fury just about surviving. Huge drama there.
Fury dictates tempo
Tyson Fury is stamping his authority, landing his left jab regularly but Ngannou responds well.
Ngannou catches Fury and it appears the Gypsy King may have a small cut above his eye…
And we’re underway!
Fury goes all out at the bginning, throing a hail mary which Ngannou dodges.
Fury then goes on the attack and makes impact. Ngannou then throws back in a thrilling start to the fiight with more blows traded.
A great opening round.
We’re moments away now
We’re moments away now from the pair going head-to-head. There’s plenty on the line for Fury against Ngannou, and all the pressure will be on his shoulders…
Fury vs Ngannou up next
Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou are finally preparing to make their walks to the ring after a 20-minute-plus delay. Sweet Caroline is blaring on the speakers and we look set to get underway.
Ring walk delayed
We were expected to see Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou make their ring walks at 11pm but it’s 11.05pm and Ngannou is still hitting pads. This could be a long night.
Opening ceremony underway
The opening ceremony is underway. I have no clue who any of these acts are but it certainly looks impressive. Hopefully, it won’t run past the proposed 11pm main event ring walk times.
Fury vs Ngannou coming up
It’s nearly time for the big fight of the. night.
There’s an ‘opening ceremony’ ahead of the ringwalks.
How are you predicting this to play out?
Drama in final undercard fight
Tensions have risen in the final undercard fight of the night between David Adeleye and Fabio Wardley.
After Wardley was awarded the win, Adeleye shoved the ref as he believed he was still in the fight.
Wardley vs Adeleye fight it out
Fabio Wardley and David Adeleye are currently in action, with round three having just taken place.
Adeleye is starting to find some momentum before Wardley lands a fierce overhand right.
McGregor arrives
Conor McGregor is now in the building. Speaking about Ngannou’s chances, he said: “It’s gonna be a tough ask, let’s be honest. Tyson is crafty, he’s big. Francis’s tools are in his pockets.”
Ngannou is in the building
Francis Ngannou has arrived for the mammoth showdown with Tyson Fury.
Parker KO
Joseph Parker, who has regularly trained with Tyson Fury in the past, has knocked out Simon Kean in the third round.
Parker picks up the vacant IBF and WBO Intercontinental heavyweight titles.
Tonight’s fight rules
Despite Ngannou’s MMA skills, tonight’s fight is purely a boxing contest – if you didn’t know. There will be 10 rounds each three minutes in length.
The result is expected to count towards both Fury and Ngannou’s boxing records (33-0-1 and 0-0) but there are no belts on the line. That means the Gypsy King will remain the WBC heavyweight champion even if he loses.
Fury is in the building!
Tyson Fury has entered the building ahead of his blockbuster showdown with Francis Ngannou. Here’s a look inside of his dressing courtesy of TNT Sports.
Makhmudov scores blistering KO
It took Arslanbek Makhmudov just 70 seconds to dispatch Junior Anthony Wright. The destructive Russian puncher caught Wright with an absolute peach of a right hand to send him tumbling to the canvas in the opening sixty seconds. To his credit, Wright made his way back to his feet but he was quickly in trouble again courtesy of a huge right hook from Makhmudov as referee Steve Gray stepped in and waved off the contest.
Itauma defeats Bernath
What a performance that is from Moses Itauma.
A brutal jab drops Istvan Bernath, before Itauma finished the job on the ropes later in the opening round.
TNT coverage down
Boxing fans are unable to watch the current action on TNT Sports Box Office as coverage has been down for quite some time.
TNT have issued an apology after a technical glitch left the screen blank: “We apologise for the break in transmission and hope to correct the fault shortly.”
Full undercard ahead of the big one
The full undercard line-up below ahead of Tyson Fury vs Francis Ngannou in Saudi Arabia:
Fabio Wardley vs David Adeleye (heavyweight)
Joseph Parker vs Simon Kean (heavyweight)
Martin Bakole vs Carlos Takam (heavyweight)
Arslanbek Makhmudov vs Junior Anthony Wright (heavyweight)
Moses Itauma vs Istvan Bernath (heavyweight)
Jack McGann vs Alcibiade Duran (super-welterweight)
Bakole powers to victory over Takam
Martin Bakole has cruised to victory over Carlos Takam on the undercard ahead of the eagerly-anticipated fight.
Takam was on the brink for a while before the referee stepped in to end the fight in the fourth round after Bakole landed more hard shots upstairs.
Good evening and welcome!
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of Tyson Fury’s mammoth fight with Francis Ngannou.
It’s set to be a titanic showdown between the two giants, and there are plenty of star-studded guests ringside tonight in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Stick with us throughout as we bring you the latest updates from the fight, and the undercard – which gets underway soon.
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