Zhilei Zhang nearly booked a boxing match against Francis Ngannou for later this month.
‘The Predator’ famously made his boxing debut in October, against Tyson Fury. Despite Francis Ngannou entering the matchup as a massive underdog, he nearly shocked ‘The Gypsy King’. The PFL heavyweight scored a knockdown in round three, and even cut the British boxer.
Ultimately, the former UFC heavyweight champion still walked away with a split-decision loss. However, it wasn’t all bad news for Francis Ngannou. The competitive fight earned him a placement in the top ten of the WBC heavyweight rankings. Furthermore, he nearly got another big fight in December.
Earlier this week, Zhilei Zhang revealed that he was in talks to fight Francis Ngannou on December 23rd. That date is now occupied by Anthony Joshua vs. Otto Wallin and Deontay Wilder vs. Joseph Parker. However, the Saudis originally wanted the MMA fighter to make a quick turnaround to headline the event.
“There were originally talks to have me fight Ngannou [on December 23rd] and I was like, ‘Okay, it’s a walk in the park for me, I’ll take it’,” Zhilei Zhang stated to MailSport regarding a potential boxing match with Francis Ngannou. “But Ngannou didn’t want to do it. And then it’s what you see. The big names started to come in like Joshua filling the card. And that’s what happened.”
As of now, Ngannou is yet to schedule his return to the ring, or the cage. However, PFL executive Donn Davis has long stated that a potential fight with Deontay Wilder is their goal for 2024. It might even happen under a mixed ruleset as well.
What do you make of these comments? Do you want to see Francis Ngannou vs. Zhilei Zhang?
