Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou, the greatest current heavyweights in boxing and MMA respectively, will go into battle in a groundbreaking event that will take place as part of Riyadh Season in the Saudi Arabian capital on Saturday Oct. 28 to determine who is the true King of the Lineal Heavyweight champions. The fight between the WBC champion and the former champion of the UFC will take place under the official rules of boxing and not, as has been suggested in certain quarters, as a non-competitive exhibition bout. Ngannou, the biggest recorded puncher in the world, will be attempting to become the first man to inflict a stoppage on the undefeated Gypsy King. The magnitude of the clash should not be underestimated. Ngannou parted ways with the UFC as heavyweight champion with the express intention of fulfilling his ambition to return to his first sporting love, which is boxing. He was a man in great demand across promotional entities for a huge boxing showdown and was linked with heavyweight encounters with both Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder. However, it was the world's premier heavyweight who he had set his heart on fighting and his wish will come true as part of Riyadh Season. Despite his preference for a war with Fury, Ngannou was presented with promotional options, not least from Joshua's backers in Eddie Hearn from Matchroom Boxing, who made public his interest in adding the man who originally hails from Cameroon to his stable of fighters for his introduction to boxing in an early 2023 interview with Fight Hub TV. "I've spoken to Francis Ngannou and others, and they are all big names in the fight world," revealed Hearn. "You can't sign everybody, but obviously we want to put together the strongest stable we can. "We want to deliver the biggest names and best fights for DAZN and certainly Ngannou, Nate Diaz, Edgar Berlanga and Terence Crawford would be fantastic additions for us. We will see what plays out." Hearn added that a fight with former unified heavyweight champion Joshua would have been firmly on the horizon had he secured the signature of the 36-year-old MMA king. "I've spoken to Francis Ngannou about it, and we could make that fight in the summer. It would be a massive event, but we will see. "I like Francis, I think he is a great man and I think he is in a great position." Ngannou, indeed, is in a great position and heading into what will be a spectacular mega-event in Saudi Arabia against the No. 1 star in heavyweight boxing. — SG
