Ngannou Had Doubts Over His Boxing Debut – ‘I Wasn’t Confident’

Francis Ngannou looked back at his fight against Tyson Fury, saying that he was not feeling confident entering into the bout.

Those comments are understandable, given everything that went on in the background before Ngannou made his boxing debut in 2023. He left the UFC on bad terms, as he missed out on securing a fight against Jon Jones. Dana White responded emphatically by saying that he would never work with the UFC again. He has also ruled out doing a co-promotion with the PFL to make any Jon Jones fight. Ngannou ultimately signed with the PFL, which gave him an opportunity to box. It was a massive decision to take a boxing fight since it could have damaged his reputation significantly.

But Ngannou secured a reported $10 million, earning him more than his entire UFC earnings. He also produced the goods even if he lost out on a split decision. He dropped Fury in the third round, pushing The Gypsy King all the way. Some subset in the boxing community were clear that Ngannou should have gotten the win, feeling he had been robbed. The fight eventually gave Ngannou an opportunity to take on Anthony Joshua. 

He reportedly doubled his purse, earning $20 million. Although Joshua knocked him out in the second round, the Fury and Joshua fights secured Ngannou’s financial future with a reported $30 million combined. That is more than what most UFC fighters will ever earn in their career. Francis eventually bounced back to winning ways by securing a victory against Renan Ferreira on his PFL debut, stopping him in the first round.

Ngannou Reacts

Ngannou has recently said that his aim is to have another boxing fight next, with reports that he could face Deontay Wilder or Wladimir Klitschko next. Once again, those fights are likely to earn Ngannou more than he would make in MMA. The decision was the right one. But looking back, Ngannou admitted that there were many doubts.

“I wasn’t confident because I have my ego as a man that says, ‘Ok, I’m fighting another man, and I have the capability to win’, but at the same time, I’m like, ‘It’s my first boxing match’. “I’m there questioning myself if I can go through three or four rounds. If I can get there, I’d never been there in my life. I’m getting to the end of my career.

“I’m fighting a guy who has experience in this entire career, getting towards the end of his own career. He’d done this lots of times; I’d never done this. One thing, ‘Can I stand up on this knee, is it going to hold up’? I had a very hard knee surgery with a lot of complications. For over a year, I couldn’t walk properly, struggling with rehab. I was like, ‘Is it going to hold up or is it going to buckle once and for all’? Again, do what you can do and see what happens,” Ngannou said 

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