Usyk and Fury have been on a collision course since the end of last year but have so far failed to reach an agreement over an undisputed heavyweight world title fight. Usyk will instead defend his three belts against Daniel Dubois next month while Fury will take on ex-UFC champion Ngannou in October.
And when asked about Fury’s decision to take on the MMA star in a boxing fight, Usyk told Seconds Out : “I have no ambitions beside one ambition – it’s to fight Tyson Fury. I saw that Conor McGregor put some significant weight on his body. Hey Conor, why don’t we make a fight at Wembley?”
Fury and Ngannou will meet in Saudi Arabia on October 28 in a fight held under boxing rules but without Fury’s world title on the line. It is unclear whether the result will go on the fighters’ records with no sanctioning body ready to back it as yet. There will be three ringside judges present and the 10-point must system – the scoring criteria used in all of professional boxing – is being implemented, but it is unclear how many rounds are scheduled.
“This guy is supposed to be the hardest puncher in the world, but let’s see how he reacts when he gets hit by the Big Gypsy King,” Fury said. “I can’t wait to get back out there. I’m looking forward to showing the world that The Gypsy King is the greatest fighter of his generation in an epic battle with another master of his craft. There is no one tougher than me, and you’ll all see that in devastating fashion on October 28.”
While Fury, who holds a record of 33 wins and one draw, is likely to attract criticism for his choice of opponent, there is a precedent as Floyd Mayweather moved to 50-0 as a boxer by defeating UFC superstar McGregor in a fight which attracted in excess of four million pay-per-view buys.
Ngannou, who has won 17 and lost three of his MMA fights, signed a contract with the PFL – one of the UFC’s rivals – in May, but the deal does not stop the Cameroonian-French fighter from pursuing boxing. Ngannou – now 36 – initially held ambitions to be a professional boxer but focused on MMA upon arriving in Europe in his mid-20s.
“I’ve been waiting to meet Tyson in the ring for the past three years,” Ngannou said. “My dream was always to box and to box the best.“After becoming the undisputed MMA heavyweight champion, this is my opportunity to make that dream come true and cement my position as the baddest man on the planet.”