Dmitry Bivol was expecting nothing more than a fun show, a circus-like atmosphere, and a unique sort of night. The Russian native wasn’t sure when the next time a big-time former UFC name would enter the ring against a current boxing star. So, with Francis Ngannou and Tyson Fury getting it on, Bivol made sure he was in attendance.
Heading in, Bivol didn’t overthink things. Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) is widely considered one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the sport and an all-time great. Also, Ngannou was a boxing newbie. It was simple math. Meaning, Bivol had a strong feeling that Ngannou was in over his head.
With a bag of popcorn in one hand and the other balled up in a fist to root on his boxing brethren, Bivol couldn’t believe what was taking place before him. Ngannou looked like a seasoned pro in there. He matched Fury’s skills for the majority of their showdown and proved that his deleterious knockout power translated just fine outside of the cage.
Ngannou may have come up short when it was all said and done but Bivol, like practically everyone else, admitted how shocking the entire night was.
“I was surprised how the fight was going,” Bivol told Fight Hub TV during a recent interview. “I didn’t give Francis too much expectations.”
It was a combination of things that Bivol is attempting to wrap his head around. Ngannou quite possibly fought the fight of his life and the current WBA light heavyweight champ tips his cap to him for his efforts. With that said, Bivol doesn’t understand how one of boxing’s biggest and brightest stars fought a horrible fight after watching him dominate his competition for the better part of the past decade and a half.
“He was good and Tyson was so bad.”