Francis Ngannou responds to Tyson Fury's boxing challenge with thinly veiled threat

UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou has hit back at rival Tyson Fury following a recent ‘chicken’ taunt on social media.

It may not be top of the priority list for fans of Francis Ngannou and Tyson Fury, but these two men seem hellbent on battling one another in a mixed rules bout. The pair have been teasing the idea for months now, to the point where Fury even invited Ngannou into the ring following his knockout win over Dillian Whyte in April.

‘The Gypsy King’ initially stated that he’d be retiring from pro boxing after the win and while that may still be the case, he’s still open to other ventures – including a superfight against ‘The Predator’.

It’s often hard to know how serious both men are but in the following Twitter interaction, it seems as if Fury struck a nerve with the MMA star.

Fury: “Thought you wanted some smoke @francis_ngannou [chicken emoji]. Lets do a propper fight! Wembley Stadium 2022”

Ngannou: “Don’t you dare think that I take my eyes out of you. You’re still my priority ! I’m coming for all the smoke. 2023.”

Ngannou: “What do you mean when you say “PROPER” fight? because I’m a real fighter, and I can make it a la carte for you since you can’t handle it all”

Whether it’s all for show or not, they’ve certainly succeeded in getting people talking.

Even though Ngannou is recovering from surgery and Fury is enjoying ‘retirement’, we’re pretty confident in saying they could still return to their respective sports.

For the right price, Fury has said he’d be open to the possibility of taking on the winner of Oleksandr Usyk vs Anthony Joshua 2 in an undisputed heavyweight title fight. On the flip side of things, Ngannou has a string of potential challengers waiting to try and take the belt off of him