Commentator Steve Bunce believes Francis Nganou vs. Deontay Wilder would be the ideal fight for the undercard of Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk on May 18th in Saudi Arabia.
Ngannou looked bad after losing to Anthony Joshua by a second-round knockout last Friday night in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Safety Concerns
It might not be safe for Ngannou to return to the ring just two months after that brutal KO to face the former WBC heavyweight champion Wilder on May 18th, who is still a dangerous puncher despite his recent loss to Joseph Parker.
You can argue that it was a bad idea to match Ngannou with Joshua in the first place, but throwing him in with Wilder just two months after being knocked out sounds dangerous.
Bunce feels that Ngannou (0-2) is one big knockout away from being in a position to “scream” for a rematch against WBC heavyweight champion Fury, whom he lost to by a questionable ten-round split decision last October.
Boxing fans might grumble if Ngannou vs. Wilder is the co-feature bout on the Fury-Usyk card rather than a match between two younger fighters coming off wins.
Joshua’s Victory
“Three punches to restore everything. Three punches to get everybody off his back. I thought he was brilliant tonight,” said Steve Bunce to iFL TV, talking about Anthony Joshua’s win over Francis Ngannou.
Joshua didn’t restore anything with his win over Ngannou, considering this isn’t a real boxer. This was just some popular ex-MMA guy, who the Saudis thought would be a great idea to match against Joshua.
For Joshua to restore his credibility, he would need to beat Oleksandr Usyk or Tyson Fury. Defeating an MMA guy and an old one at that does nothing to prove anything for Joshua.
“I actually felt sorry for Ngannou,” said Bunce. “The first knockdown was perfect. The second was brilliant, and the third and final one was devastating. That showed what your meant to do when you fight a guy like that. When you’re fighting a schooled fighter, that’s what you get.
“I think he does because of the money,” said Bunce when asked if he thinks Ngannou will carry on in boxing. “He can get a fortune over here. What about Ngannou and Wilder on the undercard of Fury and Usyk? He’s one big knockout away from screaming for Fury again,” said Bunce about Ngannou.
