10 December 2023 , 13:14
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Francis Ngannou has been told he doesn't deserve to be ranked in the WBC's top-10 after his boxing debut against Tyson Fury.
Former UFC heavyweight champion Ngannou lost a controversial split decision to Fury when they fought in Saudi Arabia at the end of October. Fury was expected to breeze past Ngannou to set up an undisputed fight against fellow heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk, but he was dropped and only won the crossover fight by a point on the judges' scorecards.
Ngannou now sits at the number 10 spot in the WBC's heavyweight rankings despite having just one professional fight. Former two-weight boxing world champion Paulie Malignaggi praised Ngannou for his performance against Fury but thinks his new ranking is unwarranted.
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“A good performance from Ngannou but no [the ranking] is not deserved. You can’t have one fight and lose and get a ranking inside the top-10. Technically a fighter in the top-10 is allowed to fight for a world championship but then there’s another rule where you can’t come off a loss and fight for a world title," he told Pro Box TV.
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“Moral victories are good, they bring a tear to the eye, they make you root for a guy but I think Ngannou needs a win before he gets a top-10 ranking. It’s a political move to get people talking and keep the WBC in the headlines. You’ve got to win your way into the rankings.”
Ngannou is expected to make his return to boxing next year but he won't be facing Fury anytime soon as the Brit fights Usyk for the undisputed world titles. Their fight also has a two-way rematch clause, meaning that Ngannou will likely pursue other opponents such as Anthony Joshua or Deontay Wilder for his next boxing fight instead of Fury.
'The Predator' is also poised to make his PFL debut next year having signed with the promotion following his UFC exit in January. PFL boss Peter Murray recently teased a mixed-rules fight between Ngannou and Wilder as he told reporters including Mirror Fighting : "I'm going to see Deontay and we want the four-ounce gloves on him with Francis in the cage."