Mike Tyson believes Francis Ngannou defeating Tyson Fury in their scheduled boxing match would be one of the biggest upsets in the history of the sport, but that doesn’t mean that the former UFC heavyweight champion doesn’t have a puncher’s chance.
“Tyson Fury got dropped by a small guy early in his career,” Tyson said on The Jim Rowe Show previewing the Oct. 28 matchup. “[Francis] punches like God knows who, man. He’s an athlete, he moves quicker, works with his speed, and listen man, he only has to land one or two.
“Tyson’s never been in the ring with somebody that can punch this hard.”
Tyson has been working with the PFL’s newest star ahead of Ngannou’s massive pro boxing bout against the heavyweight champion. “Iron” isn’t just impressed with Ngannou’s power and athleticism, but more so his determination, ability to learn, and his overall drive to succeed.
“He asked me to go all out aggression,” Tyson said. “He’s moving his head, he’s getting it together, and he’s determined to do this stuff for his country, his people, his patriotic pride. This is really interesting. I’m very excited about doing this.”
In February 1990, Tyson was on the wrong end of arguably the most shocking upset ever in boxing when he was stopped by Buster Douglas — who was a 42 to 1 underdog. Tyson was asked how big of an upset Ngannou defeating Fury would be in comparison.
“That would be a bigger upset than Douglas-Tyson,” said Tyson.