Ex-UFC star Francis Ngannou agrees with Tyson Fury’s plan to fight in a CAGE with Mike Tyson as ref

The window of opportunity for an epic fight between Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou has cracked open as the former UFC star agreed to the boxing world champion’s bizarre rules for the bout.

The pair have been teasing their fans with a cross-sport bout on social media for years after Fury first threw down the challenge – and it took a step closer to becoming reality on Tuesday. 

‘Francis Ngannou, I know you’re out of contract with the UFC,’ Fury told SecondsOut when the idea for the fight was in its infancy.

‘Wanna earn some big boy money? Come see the Gypsy King.

‘Let’s do a big, big fight for the baddest MF on the planet.

‘Let’s kick it up spicy, in a cage, four-ounce gloves, under Queensberry [boxing rules], and let’s have a bada** referee like ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson.

‘Did I just sell that to the world?’

Tyson Fury sits on his throne before entering the ring prior to the WBC World Heavyweight Title Fight against Dillian Whyte at Wembley Stadium

Francis Ngannou of Cameroon celebrates after his victory over Ciryl Gane of France in their UFC heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 270

Ngannou has now taken to Twitter to give his strongest indication yet that the challenge has been accepted.

In one post, Ngannou lists the terms of the bout – four-ounce gloves, cage, Mike Tyson as referee, Queensberry rules – with a check mark beside each term.

But he also posted an image featuring Fury, Deontay Wilder and Anthony Joshua with the caption ‘decisions’ and a thinking emoji.

So if Fury wants the Ngannou fight, his management will need to act fast unless Wilder or Joshua takes up the chance for a blockbuster hybrid fight instead. 

The Marquess of Queensberry Rules are the set of conditions that are have been widely accepted in professional boxing bouts since the late 19th century.

They include a ban on wrestling, fighters having 10 seconds to recover from a knockdown, and three-minute rounds.

However, the four-ounce gloves stipulated by Fury are far lighter than the eight-ounce versions that are the lightest used in pro fights, leaving the fighters open to sustaining far more damage. 

Fury is currently negotiating for a heavyweight showdown with Oleksandr Usyk.

Ngannou of Cameroon punches Ciryl Gane of France in their UFC heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 270 in 2022. He is now off contract and could take up a boxing bout

Fury beat Dillian Whyte with a sixth-round stoppage to retain his WBC world heavyweight title in 2022 and is now looking for his next big fight which is likely to be Ngannou or Usyk

If that fight is confirmed, it would likely spell the end of any chance of the Ngannou bout happening – at least in the short term.  

‘If the contract doesn’t get signed with Usyk next for the fight of the century in boxing, then we’ll do the Ngannou fight,’ Fury said.

‘If these fellas don’t come up and sign the contract for the big fight, then we’re moving on to greener pastures.’

But Ngannou is confident the terms can be negotiated and the Fury fight will happen.

‘Let me remind you that Tyson Fury and I have been warming up on social media for more than two years.

‘Obviously we all need this fight. It’s been long enough. Hopefully we have the possibility of dotting the I’s.’

Tyson has not officially signed on as the referee, but he did give the bout his seal of approval when asked by a fan at an exhibition fight night

Mike Tyson has not commented on the offer to referee the bout, but did give a thumbs up to a fan who asked if he approved of the bout between Fury and Ngannou at a recent exhibition fight night.

Ngannou has also trained with Iron Mike in the past, with the former heavyweight champion giving him specific advice on how to beat Tyson Fury.