The Sports Business Journal’s Adam Stern writes that Top Rank Boxing is interested in co-promoting a crossover boxing match between Francis Ngannou and Tyson Fury.
The latest foray into non-boxers, boxing comes with the UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou against the current boxing heavyweight titleholder Tyson Fury. It is well-known that Ngannou has had contract issues with the UFC and is heading toward the end of his promotional contract with the company after his fight later this month against the interim heavyweight champion Cyril Gane.
Top Rank is open to doing a co-promotion with UFC for a @Tyson_Fury–@Francis_Ngannou boxing/MMA crossover fight, per @ToddDuBoef, who told SBJ that negotiations could be made easier by both properties having their media rights tied to @ESPN.
— Adam Stern (@A_S12) January 7, 2022
🗨: "I think it'd do really well." pic.twitter.com/tqoTNThHHr
Of course, if Ngannou wins, he will be tied to the UFC via the Champion’s Clause in his contract which automatically triggers renewal to ensure that the current champion of the promotion does not leave with its title.
If he loses, which seems like the reason for this rumor, he would be open to free agency. Ngannou has eyed boxing due, in part, the lofty purses that fighters make.
According to Stern’s report, Todd Duboef of Top Rank believes that “negotiations could be made easier by both properties having their media rights tied to ESPN.”
Why Duboef believes that this is advantageous, is the likely belief that since there is a singular entity that would air such an event, there would be no ‘bidding war’ for the fighters to use leverage for more money. Moreover, assuming that the UFC, ESPN’s media partner, is doing the deal for Ngannou, the parties would receive a rate that would not break any budgets.
Of course, the prospects of a superfight happening is still a longshot.
As we educate the reader, follow where the report is coming from and who makes it. Top Rank is the one making the statement here. And, the assumption is that it can negotiate with ESPN to make this deal. There is no reference in which Top Rank works with the UFC. While its not out of the question, Bob Arum and Dana White do not get along. Notwithstanding their differences, it would not make sense for the UFC to allow Ngannou to box unless it gets a substantial split of Ngannou’s purse. Recall, that this is the reason that Conor McGregor was allowed to fight Floyd Mayweather. The UFC received a substantial portion of McGregor’s payday.
Moreover, Ngannou would be the one that would be the one to ask if he’d want to box where the UFC would be his co-promoter.
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