Francis Ngannou is about to score the biggest payday of his career.
The former UFC heavyweight champion is expected to bank a whopping $20 million for just his second pro boxing fight, according to Sports Business Journal, thanks largely in part to his shocking performance against reigning WBC champion Tyson Fury last fall. Keep in mind that Ngannou made just $600,000 to unify the heavyweight titles in UFC.
For his “sweet science” return, Ngannou will box former heavyweight titleholder Anthony Joshua atop the “Knockout Chaos” pay-per-view (PPV) card TONIGHT (Fri., March 8, 2024) on DAZN (sign up here), staged inside Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Joshua will score more than double his opponent’s payout with a staggering $50 million fight purse.
Remember that Ngannou was publicly criticized for his decision to leave UFC back in early 2023. Former two-division champion Conor McGregor believed the Cameroonian “made an error” by transitioning to boxing, while ex-heavyweight titleholder Daniel Cormier insisted Ngannou “fumbled the bag” by giving up his cagefighting career.
The list of embarrassing takes goes on and on.
Olympic silver medalist Zhang Zhilei will lace ‘em up against former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker in the “Knockout Chaos” co-main event. Both combatants are expected to bank between $2-3 million apiece, according to NY Fights. The real prize, however, will be getting to face the winner of Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk.
Assuming Joshua or Ngannou don’t get there first.
For more news and notes on the “Knockout Chaos” PPV event click here.
This story originally appeared on MMA Mania
