‘If Tyson Fury was a fraction of himself, Francis Ngannou wouldn’t lay a glove on him’

Former two-division champion Billy Joe Saunders believes Tyson Fury had an off night against Francis Ngannou.

WBC boxing champion Fury scraped by a split decision against Ngannou in their crossover boxing match in Saudi Arabia. Fury was even knocked down in Round 3 in a fight that many believed he lost.

Although Fury claimed he didn’t underestimate Ngannou, Saunders insists that Fury wasn’t at his best. He firmly believes a rematch would have a completely different outcome.

“It wasn’t a robbery,” Saunders explained on TalkSport. “It was a very close fight. It could’ve gone either way, and Tyson got the win. He’s the champion, but it wasn’t the usual Tyson we know. Right from the start, I could tell he was going to struggle because I know Tyson inside out. Normally, he stands tall, utilizing his jab and feints. If someone told me I was going to face a UFC fighter in the boxing ring, I might lose focus a bit and not pay attention to the details.

“The reality is, with a novice, you need to make them focus on the right hand and then hit them with the left hand. That’s what Tyson needed to do. … If Tyson was even a little bit like his usual self, Ngannou wouldn’t lay a glove on him. But I’ve seen Tyson in sparring – I’ve observed how he behaves during sparring sessions with certain people. To me, it seemed like he wasn’t fully engaged from the beginning. Credit to Ngannou: He performed far better than anyone anticipated.”

Ngannou wants a rematch with Fury, but that won’t happen until Fury faces Oleksandr Usyk next, a fight that was already planned before the Fury-Ngannou matchup. Their undisputed heavyweight title bout is reportedly scheduled for February.

For more information on the matchup, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Fury vs. Ngannou.

Story originally appeared on MMA Junkie