Francis Ngannou made an impact upon boxing and he changed boxing permanently, even acknowledging the fact that he woke up Saturday with an 0-2 record after getting violently finished by Anthony Joshua in the second round of their pivotal heavyweight battle in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Ngannou was able to use his pedigree as one of the greatest fighters in MMA to get a bout with WBC/llineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury on Oct. 28 in Riyadh. It wasn't a title fight, but the fact that the reigning champion stepped into the ring with him, and that both men were paid enormous amounts of money, was evidence that Ngannou had succeeded
There are boxers who fight their entire lives who never get a chance to fight the champion. Yet here was Ngannou, at 37 with nary a round as a boxer, amateur or pro, and he was fighting the best in the business.
He proved to be a disruptor when he nearly won that fight. He dropped Fury in the third and though he wilted down the stretch, many believe when the fight ended that Ngannou had deserved to win. That fight earned him a bout against Joshua, the former unified champion.
The Joshua bout, though, went more like the Fury bout was expected to go. Joshua made quick work of Ngannou, dropping him three times in two rounds with vicious right hands. Ngannou was never competitive and never landed anything of significance.
The problem for Ngannou, and for those who promote and run boxing and want to help keep pushing it forward, is what is next.
Ngannou was down for a long time in a scary scene after the stoppage. He was given oxygen in the corner before leaving the ring, though he did attend the post-fight news conference.
“I’m going to go home, get some rest, [and] process what just happened,” Ngannou said. “This has been a hell of a day, since this morning. I’ll process it and see what is the next step. Maybe MMA, but you can be sure that I’m not done here [in boxing]. Absolutely not. I’m not done.”
If he goes to MMA, he'll fight Renan Ferreira, the 2023 PFL heavyweight champion, a guy who knocked out Ryan Bader in seconds last month at the PFL versus Bellator card.
That, though, isn't a particularly intriguing fight. Ngannou would be a huge favorite over Ferreira and there is exactly no one who was calling to see it. It will probably happen because Ngannou signed a deal with the PFL and they have business they're doing together beyond the cage, but it's not going to garner the worldwide attention that his boxing matches with Fury and Joshua did. Of course, a bout with UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones would be massive, too, but that ship has long since sailed.
But if Ngannou is going to box again, what is fair and would maintain some integrity of the sport in the process? Does Ngannou even deserve a shot at another top guy after going 0-2?
He has talked a lot about fighting former champion Deontay Wilder in the past, and though Wilder looked awful in a loss to Joe Parker on Dec. 23, there might be some interest. Wilder is the hardest puncher of this generation of boxers and among the hardest of all-time. Ngannou is the biggest puncher in MMA history and he certainly has the ability to hurt any boxer if he lands cleanly.
That fight would have the potential to be a modern day version of George Foreman versus Ron Lyle, one of the greatest slugfests ever to take place.
The loser of that fight would be all but done. If Wilder lost, it would be his fourth loss in his last five. He lost twice in a row by KO to Fury, stopped Robert Helenius in one and then was drubbed by Parker. Losing to Ngannou would be it for him, one would think.
If Ngannou lost to Wilder and dropped to 0-3, how could you possibly bring him back against anyone of substance?
The other option for Ngannou if he's going to stay at a high-level might be Zhilei Zhang, who lost to Parker on Friday in the co-main event despite dropping Parker twice. Like Ngannou, Zhang is a huge puncher, but he didn't throw nearly enough punches to win. That was the same issue Ngannou had against Fury.
Ngannou's options are limited now, and he carries an 0-2 record.
He's hardly a loser, though. He chased a boyhood dream, built his name and earned generational wealth in the process. He proved a point even while losing.
For a guy who was sleeping on the streets of Paris not all that long ago, that certainly seems like a winner to me regardless of what his record shows.