Tyson Fury narrowly edged Francis Ngannou, Cameroonian-French mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, via split decision in their heavyweight boxing bout on Sunday.
Ngannou had sent Fury to the canvas with a vicious left hook in the third round of the fight, held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
However, the British boxer survived the knockdown and saw through the 10-round non-title bout.
Two judges swung Fury’s way with 96-93 and 95-94 on their cards, while one called the fight 95-94 in favour of Ngannou.
Speaking on the victory, Fury, the World Boxing Council (WBC) heavyweight champion, admitted the Cameroonian-French gave him “one of my toughest fights of the last 10 years”.
“That definitely wasn’t in the script,” the British boxer said.
“I got caught round the back of the head [for the knockdown]. I wasn’t hurt. I got up and got back to my boxing.
“He’s an awkward man and a good puncher, and I respect him a lot. He’s given me one of my toughest fights of the last 10 years.”
The fight was Ngannou’s professional boxing debut after a spell in the UFC, where he was the heavyweight champion.
He left UFC earlier this year due to a contractual disagreement.
He then joined the Professional Fighters League (PFL). Ngannou’s contract frees him to pursue his boxing goals.
Ngannou was trained by Mike Tyson, one of the greatest boxers ever, for the fight against Fury.
