Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou hinted towards a mixed-rules bout in some capacity after the WBC heavyweight champion's sixth-round knockout win over Dillian Whyte last weekend.
While it does sound like an interesting matchup, Chael Sonnen questions who will host the much-anticipated bout with these 'made-up' rules.
During a recent episode of Beyond the Fight on his YouTube channel, 'The American Gangster' discussed the potential bout between the two heavyweights. He weighed in on who could possibly host the fight if it were to happen in the future. Sonnen said:
"Who's going to host this? Eddie Hearn came out yesterday and said, 'I don't even think it's gonna happen.' Don King doesn't have distribution, Oscar De La Hoya, those guys are out of the business. The Money Team has never existed even' though you guys think that it does. So who's going to buy it? You got Dana White, Scott Coker, you got Chatri [Sityodtong] in the world of MMA. They're out! Who do you got left? Is Vince gonna do it? Maybe. Quite possibly. I mean as silly as they're getting, they're gonna make up as a sport and make up their own rules. Sure, Vince could do it."
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Sonnen also added that networks such as FOX, ESPN and SHOWTIME are also highly active in the space and it is likely that one of them could make the fight happen without a boxing promotor.
Watch Chael Sonnen discuss a potential Ngannous vs. Fury fight below:
Francis Ngannou hints that hybrid match with Tyson Fury will happen next year
Francis Ngannou has been calling for a boxing fight with 'The Gypsy King' for a while now. 'The Predator' has now hinted that the fight will finally happen next year.
Appearing on a recent episode of The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, the UFC heavyweight champion discussed a potential hybrid-rules match with Fury and stated that the fight will likely happen in 2023. Here's what Ngannou said:
"It's just a matter of our promotion, the contract situation and everything but we are going to sort this out at some point, probably next year. And this fight is going to happen."
While Francis Ngannou is currently in the middle of an ongoing dispute with the UFC, he also recently underwent an ACL knee reconstruction and an MCL repair. Ngannou also gave an update to Helwani on his condition and revealed that he could be back in fighting condition by December this year.
Catch Francis Ngannou's full interview onb The MMA Hour below:
Ngannou's UFC contract is also reportedly set to expire in December 2022. 'The Predator' has been seeking freedom to box, in addition to a bump in pay.