Kamaru Usman, the former UFC welterweight champion, had multiple thoughts in his mind when he saw his former colleague Francis Ngannou locking horns with Tyson Fury last Saturday night.
Ngannou landed the harder shots… Fury felt that: Kamaru Usman
On 28th October at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Fury and Ngannou locked horns in a 10-round official sanctioned fight. The bout marked Ngannou’s debut as a boxer, while Fury’s WBC title was not up for grabs.
Although the pre-fight odds favoured Fury heavily, the fight went the distance with Ngannou proving to be a much tougher challenge for “The Gypsy King”, and the former UFC heavyweight champ even knocked Fury down in round three.
At the end of the 10 rounds, the final scores were 96-93, 95-94, 94-95 in favour of Fury, raising several eyebrows and the split decision verdict was ultimately met with huge controversy.
Usman, who was present ringside to watch the fight, spoke to MMA Junkie while leaving the arena about his thoughts on the fight.
“(Ngannou) landed the harder shots, the cleaner shots – but it’s boxing,” said Usman. “(The judges) are going to do what they’re going to do. Of course I’m proud – yes, very proud. I knew this: I said if Francis touches you, either hand, it’s going to be a problem. I (thought) Tyson Fury felt that, and that’s why he just decided to point fight (and play safe).”
“Either (the rematch or a new opponent) – it doesn’t matter,” Usman said. “Anthony Joshua, Deontay Wilder, all those other guys, the big big-name heavyweights – I think now they see what Francis Ngannou has to offer,” he added.
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