Tyson Fury narrowly defeated former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou in a contentious split-decision victory.
Being knocked down in the third round, Fury secured the victory with judges’ scores of 96-93 and 95-94 in his favor, while one judge scored it 95-94 for Ngannou.
Fury, the reigning WBC heavyweight champion and a highly regarded figure in the sport, remained unbeaten as a professional. In contrast, Ngannou was making his professional boxing debut in this scheduled 10-round bout.
However, Fury’s heavyweight title was not on the line since Ngannou lacked professional boxing experience.
Ngannou put up an incredible fight, stunning Fury with a powerful left hook in the third round and maintaining control in many of the subsequent rounds.
Fury acknowledged the challenge, stating, “That definitely wasn’t in the script,” and praised Ngannou: “Francis is a hell of a fighter, strong, big puncher, and a lot better boxer than we all thought he would be. He’s a very awkward man, and I respect him a lot.”
Ngannou, while acknowledging the result didn’t favor him, remained gracious and determined: “It didn’t go my way. I might have come up short today. I’ll come back.”
The fight was a remarkable clash between two combat sports worlds.
