Paid Members wandshogun09 Posted October 23, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 (edited) This circus is just days away now. Hasn’t been much talk about it really on here but thought it probably warrants a thread of its own. Tyson Fury vs Francis Ngannou Fabio Wardley vs David Adeleye Joseph Parker vs Simon Kean Carlos Takam vs Martin Bakole Arslanbek Makhmudov vs Junior Anthony Wright Moses Itauma vs Istvan Bernath Jack McGann vs Roberto Duran Jr That’s the card then. I’ll be honest I’ve completely ignored this whole thing. Forgot it was even this week until my brother mentioned it over the weekend. It’s snuck up on me. Not gonna pretend I’m buzzing or anything. It is what it is. If there’s been a buildup (has there?) then it’s passed me by. But I’ll watch a few bits and bobs this week before the fight on Saturday. Had no idea what was on the undercard until now. But it’s not bad at all that. All Heavyweights apart from McGann vs Duran’s kid. I’ll give it a bash. Here we go then. That was where it really started. April 2022 after Tyson stopped Dillian Whyte at Wembley. They had their little interaction and, in amongst Tyson asking Francis about the size of his knob, they were both teasing some weird ‘hybrid’ fight where they’d box but wearing MMA gloves. Obviously nothing came of that. Fury then battered Chisora in a third fight nobody was asking for and Ngannou finally settled his dispute with the UFC due to his contract expiring and he became a free agent. Then in July, in the midst of all the contract negotiations to get Fury vs Usyk or AJ on, it got announced. Like I said, it is what it is. And what it is, is a blatant cash grab from Fury. Can’t even say I blame him. He’s 33-0-1 and he’s gonna make millions to style on a MMA fighter who’s 0-0 in Boxing. The only frustration is that we’re still waiting on those Fury vs Usyk and Fury vs AJ fights. If those fights weren’t there waiting to be made I don’t think anyone would’ve had an issue with something like this. But the longer it drags on (the AJ thing’s already been years on end), the window is closing on both. Fury’s 35 now, he’s not gonna be around forever. Hopefully once this Ngannou sideshow is out the way, he’ll crack on with those fights and end his career the right way. The reports recently that the Usyk fight is a done deal is still not convincing me we actually get the fight next. But we’ll see. I’ll be over the moon to be proven wrong. This man is next though. Love Big Francis. Genuinely seems like one of the nicest guys in combat sports. There’s literally nothing to not like about him. And if you know his backstory, it’s honestly a Hollywood rags to riches movie waiting to be made. To go from homelessness to making it to the UFC to becoming UFC champion to bagging a fight with the best Heavyweight boxer of his generation is absolute madness. Chuffed for him. He wanted to be a boxer originally and kind of fell into MMA. And after all the stick he got after leaving the UFC, with Dana White saying he shat himself and ran from Jon Jones, and all the arselicker Dana/UFC fans saying Ngannou “fumbled the bag”, it was great to see him secure this fight. It’s a bit of a joke to us in a competitive sense but it’s massive for him. This is absolutely gonna be a dream come true for the big man. But he’s obviously not got a hope here though. And training with Mike Tyson isn’t gonna change that. People are gonna trot out the old ‘punchers chance’ thing but I don’t even think that applies much in this case. He hits like a truck, no question about it. But his style works in the chaos of MMA where he’s often fighting grapplers or opponents with a similar or lesser level of striking to him. He’s no technical marvel but he’s been able to get away with it in MMA and make up for it with his power (enhanced by the little 4oz gloves) and a different ruleset. Now he’s not just coming into Boxing and adjusting to the bigger gloves, a ring instead of the cage, shorter rounds, more rounds etc. He’s doing it against Tyson Fury. And I just think Fury’s size and style and intelligence between the ropes is gonna really limit that ‘punchers chance’ to practically nothing. His only chance, slim as it is, is to just come out guns blazing, isn’t it? It’s risky and if he doesn’t get Tyson out of there he’ll probably gas himself out and get battered but it’s a risk he’s gonna have to take. If he doesn’t do it he’s gonna get schooled anyway. At least he gives himself a bit of a chance that way. If he tries to actually box with Tyson he’s got zero chance whatsoever. Literally zero. He’s still got a couple of names to add to his resume but it’s hard not to rate Fury as the best Heavyweight of his era based on what we have seen. A freak of a man, moving the way he does at 6’9” and lardy. Deceptively agile, durable as fuck, underrated power before the Wilder trilogy, and obviously a great boxer and a smart and crafty one. On paper this Ngannou fight should be easy. When they had their little face-off a couple of months back and Fury got his tits out, I remember some sections of the MMA fanbase getting their hopes up and talking about how fat Tyson was, how he “wasn’t taking it seriously” and how he’s gonna gas etc. To me he looked the same as always. He’s never been a body guy and he doesn’t seem to care. His brother Tommy looks like a WWF Hasbro but I doubt Tyson would trade his talent for Tommy’s looks and physique. Skills pay bills. If anyone’s gonna “gas” in this fight, it’s gonna be Francis. It’s gonna be 10x3 minute rounds apparently. Completely different to what he’s used to, different pacing, different energy management, the lot. And Tyson’s a master at controlling the pace, making opponents miss and leaning on them and making them carry his weight. I can see Ngannou hitting air a lot in this one and that’s gonna sap his cardio in itself. As for not taking it seriously, he can’t see this as a huge threat but he’s been saying the right things… “I only trained 6 weeks for Deontay Wilder. I’m training 12 weeks for Francis. I need to be on my A-game because there’s more on the line now than a boxing fight. If I lose to a number one contender or another champion, then people would say, ‘oh, he lost to another champion.’ But if I lost to an MMA guy, I’m never going to be able to show my face in public again. There’s going to be ridicule and people are going to chuck it in my face forever.” “Whether the media wants to take it as a joke or not, make no mistake, Tyson Fury will leave no stone unturned and I will come in at my fittest and strongest I’ve ever been to beat this man.” - Tyson Fury He’s also been dropping hints about wanting to fight Ngannou “in the cage” but that’s not happening is it? This photo is from today and, I don’t know if it’s the angle or the clobber he’s got on flattering him, but he definitely looks leaner here to me than he did at that press conference in September… No doubt it’s all an illusion and he’ll be as blubbery as ever on fight night. Not much else to say. Ngannou’s getting chinned isn’t he? On the one hand, that’s the result that needs to happen and then hopefully normal service resumes and we can get back to reality and get Fury vs Usyk on next. But part of me would love to see Francis somehow pull this off. Not only would it shake things up, it would be a fairytale moment for Francis and the biggest ever ‘fuck you’ to Dana White. I can’t not want that ? but yeah, it’s not happening. And I’d rather see Fury vs Usyk than Ngannou winning and chaos for chaos’s sake. Anyway, yeah, it’s on TNT Sports Box Office for £21.95 if you’re a law abiding citizen. Coverage starts at 6pm, main event ring walks expected between 10pm and 10:40pm depending on where you read. Knowing the pacing of these shows it’ll probably be more like fucking midnight. Fury vs Ngannou promo; And the face-off with little Carl Frampton comically in the middle; Edited October 23, 2023 by wandshogun09 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Carbomb Posted October 23, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 It's not going to happen, but oh, my fucking god, imagine if Big Fran did it? People would think there was a terrorist attack in Vegas from the sound of Plastic Caesar's head exploding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfogg1991 Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 Honestly I am excited for this more so than alot of fight fans I know..... not just that I am pretty fucking confident that Francis can get the knock out...... He doesn't have to think or worry about anything else like he did in MMA he just solely needs to defend and throw punches that land. Tyson is obviously the best boxer in the world and has been for so many years however he isn't exactly known for his unbelievably strong and heavy hands..... Francis is FUCKING known for that and he's had the fucking main man mike Tyson in his camp getting him ready so it's not like he's not fully been in a real training camp for this. I love Tyson fury and have loved him since he started being so vocal and open with mental health for men and himself but I really do see the chance of Francis finding the opening too land one of his devastating punches and this will be heavier than he took from wilder also a good point to make Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Carbomb Posted October 23, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 2 hours ago, Kfogg1991 said: he just solely needs to defend and throw punches that land. Against Tyson Fury, I'm not sure I'd use the words "just" or "solely". It's much easier said than done. Deontay Wilder is a more experienced and more skilled boxer than Ngannou, and he couldn't get the job done; everyone thought he only needed one bomb to put Fury away, and it didn't work. He couldn't land another. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members wandshogun09 Posted October 23, 2023 Author Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 Yeah, there’s no evidence to suggest Ngannou hits any harder than Wilder and, even when Wilder did connect and scored (I think) 3 knockdowns over their 3 fights, Fury recovered every time. And not only survived, he came back and took over again all 3 times. It’s not as simple as ‘all Ngannou has to do is connect and Tyson’s done’. Fury’s a bastard to land clean on and, even if you do get one through, he’s stupidly tough and durable. Ngannou could land a perfectly timed, perfectly placed shot and knock Tyson out. Nobody’s chin is indestructible. But the chances of it are so slim it’s not something to have any confidence in. Literally all Ngannou’s bringing is power. And power means sod all if you’re swinging and missing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Carbomb Posted October 23, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 It seemed to me that, if you're bringing power, the best thing you can do is go for body shots against Fury - he's got a lot to hit. But if it were so easy, someone would have done that by now. He's incredibly skilled, and he probably knows how to neutralise that kind of shot, not to mention he is, as you say, stupidly tough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Lion_of_the_Midlands Posted October 23, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 I think it was 4 knock-downs in the 3 fights Wand, 2 in the first and 2 in the 3rd. Wilder is a terrible boxer, he can't work the pads and has terrible footwork, yet he'd still be better than Ngannou who won't even be the best boxing Francis in the arena if Frank's lad is at ringside. I'm sure it will be a beautifully sports washed spectacle, but as a contest it is as one sided as me Vs a plate of chips. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Egg Shen Posted October 24, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 24, 2023 I'm not feeling much about it to be honest, and for me that's quite surprising because I usually love the random bullshit like this, and this about as high profile as it's ever been. It's probably because there are good legit heavyweight fights that need to be made, and as much as it's nice to see Francis make bank, i'd much rather see him fight in MMA. The result here seems like a foregone conclusion too, I think it may take a bit longer than some suggest, but see see Tyson stopping Francis around about the 8th round mark. That said, I'll probably be buzzing by Saturday night. I'm free to watch live and the undercard is real solid, so a night in with this on sounds like a good time to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Posted October 24, 2023 Share Posted October 24, 2023 On 10/23/2023 at 12:58 PM, wandshogun09 said: The only frustration is that we’re still waiting on those Fury vs Usyk and Fury vs AJ fights. If those fights weren’t there waiting to be made I don’t think anyone would’ve had an issue with something like this. But the longer it drags on (the AJ thing’s already been years on end), the window is closing on both. Fury’s 35 now, he’s not gonna be around forever. Hopefully once this Ngannou sideshow is out the way, he’ll crack on with those fights and end his career the right way. The reports recently that the Usyk fight is a done deal is still not convincing me we actually get the fight next. But we’ll see. I’ll be over the moon to be proven wrong. I'm sure I mentioned a while back that I'd heard the reasoning behind the Fury fight with Usyk not happening is simply because both guys want the huge money that only the Saudi's can provide. Usyk, for reasons of promotion, wasn't able to fight in Saudi until the end of this year or into early 2024. That's why he was fucking about in Poland against Dubois. Fury, who was able to fight in Saudi already due to his promotional ties, decided to put this fight with Ngannou together in the meantime. But both Usyk and Fury have been keeping their powder dry to really cash in when they face each other, which will happen next now the Saudi dough is on the table. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gooner Posted October 26, 2023 Share Posted October 26, 2023 I'm looking forward to Wardley vs Adeleye. Hard one to predict, Wardley has thr better resume but Adeleye it parts of his career so far I've been impressed. I'm going with Adeleye to win, late stoppage or on points. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Egg Shen Posted October 26, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 26, 2023 Yeah @Goonerit's a great fight! The undercard on its own is really good. Few knockovers but there's 2 other good fights there outside of the British Title fight (Parker/Kean, Bakole/Takam). Interestingly, the undercard is taking place in a different ring to the main event, I dont even think its in the same room, not sure how that's gonna work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members wandshogun09 Posted October 27, 2023 Author Paid Members Share Posted October 27, 2023 Look at John Fury the big tit. Used to find him mildly amusing but he’s absolutely insufferable at this point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfogg1991 Posted October 27, 2023 Share Posted October 27, 2023 Yeah have to agree with that one, I've found him entertaining as fuck in the past but Christ the past few press conference's he's been a total tit and looks like he's sunk a bottle of JD before going out there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Egg Shen Posted October 27, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 27, 2023 3 hours ago, wandshogun09 said: Look at John Fury the big tit. Used to find him mildly amusing but he’s absolutely insufferable at this point. Agreed 100% why are they allowing him on the stage? Berk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Egg Shen Posted October 27, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 27, 2023 The legends are out and about, check this out this crew: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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