Two-division ONE world champion Anatoly Malykhin has given his thoughts on the upcoming boxing bout between lineal king Tyson Fury and mixed martial arts star Francis Ngannou.
The pair are set to clash in Saudi Arabia in October, and the crossover fight has divided opinions in the combat sports world.
Malykhin, for his part, believes that the boxing experience of the undefeated “Gypsy King” will be too much for Ngannou, and he compared the matchup to a previous high-profile boxing vs. MMA event.
“I think Francis Ngannou is in big trouble because he is entering uncharted territory, the deep waters, and there is only one shark in that right now,” he said.
“Tyson Fury is the biggest and the strongest shark out there, and it’s going to be a very tough night for Ngannou. I think the fight will be roughly similar to the Conor McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather fight. Fury will just play the game and when he wants to, he’ll finish this fight. But there is an upside – Ngannou will make a lot of money. I think that’s why he’s going in there.
“Sladkiy” has left a trail of destruction across ONE Championship’s heavyweight and light heavyweight divisions.
He has a perfect 5-0 slate in the martial arts giant and most recently unified the ONE heavyweight world title with a dominant three-round demolition of former divisional king Arjan Bhullar last month.
Despite his dominance in MMA, the 35-year-old is realistic in his assessment of his own chances against Fury.
“When it comes to boxing, of course, I do not overestimate my chances, and I realize that I would have nothing to show against a man who has been boxing all his life and is the undisputed heavyweight boxing champion. Just as he would have nothing to show against me in freestyle wrestling,” Malykhin said.
“Let’s put it this way – if I’m a lifelong freestyle wrestler, and Tyson Fury fights me in freestyle wrestling, the same thing will happen to him that will happen to me in boxing.”
Although a hypothetical fight with Ngannou is unlikely, due to the pair being contracted to rival promotions, Malykhin is far more confident of his chances if a showdown between them were to come to fruition.
The Russian powerhouse believes he would get the job done against Ngannou, regardless of the ruleset.
“Of course, first, I would like to fight Ngannou under MMA rules, as it’s my game. I would also like to fight Ngannou under boxing rules, as my striking is at a good level for an MMA fighter,” Malykhin said.
“As for an MMA match against Ngannou, it would be an interesting opposition – the champions of the best leagues in the world, ONE and UFC, clashing on an international stage. I would prove that the heavyweights in ONE are the strongest heavyweights in the world. I think I would win a fight with Ngannou easily. Very easily.”
