'Don't underestimate Ngannou, he can beat AJ!'

Francis Ngannou is set to face Anthony Joshua in his second professional boxing match on March 8

Francis Ngannou is on a ‘mission’ and cannot be underestimated against Anthony Joshua , says Peter Murray, the Professional Fighters League chief executive.

MMA organisation PFL has signed former UFC champion Ngannou but has encouraged him to take part in major boxing events too.

Last October, when making his pro boxing debut, Ngannou nearly caused an upset with an impressive performance against Tyson Fury, connecting a left hook in the third round to leave the WBC heavyweight champion on the canvas in their non-title bout.

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He lost a split decision to Fury but has set up another boxing contest against Anthony Joshua on March 8.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Murray warned: “Everybody underestimated Francis with Tyson, including Tyson.

“So, I think Francis has been training constantly. He certainly won the crowd and the fan base around the world, and many would say, including me, he won that fight.

“But he’s on a mission and I would not underestimate the big fella against AJ. It’s going to be a massive event.

“We’re excited for him, and we’ll obviously be in his corner.”

The close affair has enhanced Ngannou’s reputation and Murray believes the 37-year-old, who signed a deal with the PFL last May, is in great shape and will only get better ahead of this upcoming fight in March.

Ngannou, for all his experience in combat sports, is only having his second pro boxing bout, while Joshua is a seasoned boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and two-time unified heavyweight champion.

But Murray argues that Ngannou can beat Joshua. “I believe he can,” he said.

“Francis is only going to get better in his second showing. So I think it’s on. It’ll be really fun event to watch.

“He’s the number one heavyweight MMA champion in the world. He’s taken on boxing, his pro boxing career, his first event, against one of the best in the world and now his second event against one of the very best in the world.

“So, you know that’s always been part of Francis’s vision in this stage of his career and we’re proud of him. Couldn’t be more excited for him.”

Murray has overseen some big changes within MMA after the PFL announced it had acquired rival MMA promotion Bellator in November.

He does have plans for Ngannou to come back to MMA as well. Murray expects a return to mixed martial arts in the latter part of this year, with high-profile opponents eager to take Ngannou on.

“We have two champions, you know, we have Renan Ferreira and [Ryan] Bader,” he said.

“Those heavyweights, both of them would like a crack at Francis and we’ll see who will get that shot and then [there are] other potential what I would call crossover fighters into MMA.”

One of those crossover fighters could be Deontay Wilder.

‘Incredible’ Wilder would still be a huge fight in MMA

Wilder has discussed featuring in the MMA in the past and, despite his defeat to Joseph Parker in December, Murray believes a Wilder fight would be an appealing option for Ngannou.

He envisions a crossover bout, with its exact rules to be defined, but which would be contested in the small MMA gloves.

“Big fight. Still a big fight despite Deontay’s loss. He’s an incredible athlete, hard-hitting fighter and I think this would be a fresh look on him,” Murray said.

“I think Francis would agree that those two in a cage, with four-ounce gloves, that would be a fight and a fight fans would want to see.

“So it’s definitely a conversation.”

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Deontay Wilder suffered a surprise unanimous decision defeat to Joseph Parker in December