Athletes react to Tyson Fury's close win over Francis Ngannou

Athletes react to Tyson Fury’s close win over Francis Ngannou،

Anthony Gharib, ESPNOctober 29, 2023, 12:42 a.m.

The long-awaited boxing match between WBC and lineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury and former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, lived up to the hype on Saturday.

The 10-round fight ended in a split decision victory for Fury, who remains undefeated.

Ngannou defied all odds and went the distance against Fury. After leaving the UFC earlier this year, Ngannou made his intentions to box seriously clear in his new deal with the Professional Fighters League in May. The contract allowed him to box, setting up a mega-fight with Fury.

Ngannou shared his thoughts on the decision after the fight.

Tyson should say thank you to these 2 judges because I didn’t win this fight 🙄#FuryvsNgannou #RiyadhSeason

– Francis Ngannou (@francis_ngannou) October 29, 2023

Fury will defend his championship belt against Oleksandr Usyk on December 23.

LeBron James and other stars were shocked by the decision.

This is exactly why I don’t watch boxing! Come on man! 🤦🏾‍♂️

-LeBron James (@KingJames) October 28, 2023

Wow!?

– Damien Lillard (@Dame_Lillard) October 28, 2023

😳

– Canelo Álvarez (@Canelo) October 28, 2023

Split decision…sounds familiar.

– Jake Paul (@jakepaul) October 28, 2023

NO F WAY FRANCIS IS STOLEN🇨🇲🇨🇲

– Joel Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) October 28, 2023

What! OMFG!!! They gave it to @Tyson_Fury!!! #FuryNgannou

– Rosie Perez (@rosieperezbklyn) October 28, 2023

Watching from the ring, I thought Ngannou won the fight. It was close but he was the aggressor, landed heavier shots and scored a knockdown. Fury deserved to lose after struggling so hard against a man who has never boxed before… too much time filming Netflix specials no…

– Chris Eubank Jr (@ChrisEubankJr) October 28, 2023

Francis did better than I expected! Extremely! I can’t believe he let Fury down!!!! Wow!

– Claressa Gwoat Shields (@Claressashields) October 28, 2023

Francis you won my brother. No matter the scorecards, you are the winner tonight. @francis_ngannou you bet on yourself and it paid off big.

– Ryan Clark (@Realrclark25) October 28, 2023

Francis Ngannou won this fight

-Logan Paul (@LoganPaul) October 28, 2023

It really sucks to see Ngannou get blatantly robbed like this…boxing needs a more objective system in place for scoring

The subjectivity and bias inherent in hand-picked judges ruins the credibility of the sport 📉

-Logan Paul (@LoganPaul) October 28, 2023

UFC fighters also didn’t hesitate to weigh in on the outcome.

Wow come on Francis Ngannou won this fight! ✊🏾🤴🏿 👑

– GILBERT BRÛLE DURINHO (@GilbertDurinho) October 28, 2023

No way… https://t.co/FVv9IyBJ7Y

– Casey Oneill (@kingcaseymma) October 28, 2023

Proud on behalf of all UFC fighters! Well done @francis_ngannou !

– Alex “Poatan” Pereira (@AlexPereiraUFC) October 28, 2023

Francis!!! Super impressive and you can make a case that he won! Conor paved the way for this, and Francis Ngannou opened the doors wide! It’s proof that with good preparation, MMA guys can more than hang with the best boxers around….

– Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) October 28, 2023

Almost! Never doubt this man again. @francis_ngannou what a beast! #furyvsngannou

– Max Holloway (@BlessedMMA) October 28, 2023

. @PFL currently owns the biggest MMA heavyweight on the planet. I don’t know of any other HWY that will go the distance with Fury! Class @francis_ngannou

– Derek Brunson (@DerekBrunson) October 28, 2023

But MMA fighters don’t know how to box, right?🤔?
Congratulations @francis_ngannou 🦾 way to represent a hell of a fight 💯

– AJ “The Mercenary” McKee (@ajmckee101) October 28, 2023

MMA is the king of all sports.

– Jan Blachowicz (@JanBlachowicz) October 28, 2023

Ngannou came out to box against Fury, knocking the fighter down in the third round, marking only the seventh time in Fury’s career that he has been knocked down. Jake Paul and Henry Cejudo were among others from the fighting world who responded.