Rivals Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou clash once again in Riyadh
Tyson Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) traded verbal blows with Francis Ngannou (0-1) when the pair unexpectedly clashed in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
While the former UFC heavyweight champion’s next fight against Anthony Joshua (27-3, 24 KOs) takes place this Friday, there is still plenty of animosity between him and Fury following their encounter in October last year.
The WBC and lineal heavyweight champion was photographed with his former opponent inside the home of Turki Alalshikh, who has largely spearheaded boxing’s limelight in the Middle East.
Former world middleweight champion Andy Lee, among a room full of fighters, observed the pair collide.
On IFL TV, he mentioned that Fury confronted Ngannou, and said: “Hey you, you’ve been talking about me in interviews saying that I’m a coward. You called me yellow belly.
“I beat you; I beat you. What does your record say? You take care of your man and I’ll take care of my man, and I’ll give it to you again.”
Fury’s manager Spencer Brown also discussed the awkward collision, “It was unbelievable. We’d just got off the place and we were told we were wanted at the house and we walked in and everybody was there.
“So Tyson gave me a look as if to say ‘you’ve stitched me up here’, but obviously I didn’t, we didn’t know. Next thing is Tyson’s gone straight over to Ngannou and called him out.
“Turki Alalshikh was sat there laughing, but that’s what he does, he’s that sort of character. He’s a cracking fella!”
Fury is in Riyadh supporting his brother, Roman, and gym-mate Joseph Parker, who both feature in heavyweight dustups on the undercard of Joshua vs Ngannou.
The 35-year-old edged a contentious split decision against Ngannou in the same city, where the professional boxing debutant dropped his vastly experienced opponent in the third round of their contest.
Now, Fury will take on Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight crown on May 18 – just three months on from their original date, which was scuppered due to a cut above Fury’s right eye that he sustained in sparring.
Hoping to enter the ring injury free, Fury is seemingly already looking ahead to a potential rematch with his foe.
A showdown against Joshua, though, is perhaps more mouthwatering from a British fan’s perspective, but both will need to come through their upcoming tests for it to materialise.