Daniel Cormier backs former UFC champion Francis Ngannou in his upcoming fight against British superstar Anthony Joshua.
In his second professional fight as a boxer, Ngannou will face the former two-time heavyweight champion on March 8 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Ngannou made his boxing debut against WBC champion Tyson Fury last October.
In a very unexpected turn of events, Fury went down in the third round and fought Ngannou’s style for the rest of the fight. Fury won by split decision over ten rounds.
“Can Francisco do what he did before or surpass it? Because you have to think that Tyson Fury, who fought Francis Ngannou, will have fought the worst version of Francis Ngannou that has ever existed as a boxer. He was an amateur when he fought Tyson Fury. He now shared the ring with the lineal world heavyweight champion, knocked him down and fought a very competitive fight where some people thought he actually won. He will be better the second time,” Cormier said on his YouTube channel.
Despite the great performance against Fury in 2023, Joshua has opened up as a big favorite.
Cormier expects Ngannou to be a much better fighter in his next boxing appearance.
“Are you telling me after watching that fight with Tyson Fury and seeing Francis Ngannou, that he still doesn’t have a better chance of winning?” Cormier said.
“Especially when he’s fighting a guy who denied Tyson Fury. We’ve seen Usyk beat Joshua, but I think he has the most, and I’ll tie him into this fight because of the dangers Francis shows. Go back and watch Ruiz’s second fight with Anthony Joshua.
“He’s a big, strong guy, but after Ruiz beat him the first time, he won, but he fought very, very safely. And Andy Ruiz looks like me, no disrespect to him. How is he going to respond to a guy who looks like Francis Ngannou in front of him? A big, strong, scary guy looking to take his head off, which will be better than when he fought the lineal heavyweight champion in his first professional fight.”
At the same time, Cormier believes Ngannou needs to take the fight to Joshua, even more than he did against Fury.
“To win, you have to do what you did last time, but you have to be a little fiercer in your approach,” Cormier said.
“Because I really believe that if he approaches this fight with bad intentions and goes out and swings and is a little reckless, I think it will make Joshua fight in such a way that it will limit all these abilities that he has.” he has built over a lifetime. “I think Francisco has a chance and I think Francisco can make it,” Cormier said.
