Francis Ngannou vs. Tyson Fury: Boxing Betting Odds, Lines, Picks & Prediction

Forbes

27 October 2023

Francis Ngannou vs. Tyson Fury: Boxing Betting Odds, Lines, Picks & Prediction

Francis Ngannou, widely regarded as one of the hardest punchers in combat sports history, and legendary heavyweight boxer Tyson Fury are set to fight Saturday, Oct. 28 in Saudi Arabia.

Fury’s boxing titles won’t be on the line for Ngannou, a former UFC champion, to win.

Ngannou, 17-3 in MMA, has never competed professionally in boxing. Fury is undefeated, with 33 professional boxing wins.

Official sports betting odds for the fight have Fury as a -1400 favorite. Ngannou is a +760 underdog. The odds from DraftKings Sportsbook are subject to change leading up to and during the bout.

Fury vs. Ngannou Prop Bets

Total rounds: Over/Under 5.5 (-110/-125)
Method of victory: Fury by decision (+600), Fury by knockout (-550), Ngannou by decision (+5000), Ngannou by knockout (+850)
Draw: +2500

Odds from DraftKings subject to change.

Fury vs. Ngannou Prediction

Oddsmakers have Fury as a massive favorite to win by a finish, and that’s the safest play here in this match. Fury has won his last four fights by stoppage.

Two of those stoppage wins came against Deontay Wilder, widely regarded as one of the hardest punchers in boxing. So, Fury has experience finishing a knockout artist.

Hugely lopsided boxing matches are tricky for bettors, as the long-shot odds for the underdog are generally unappealing. Fury by TKO/KO is the best play, but -550 odds are a hefty price.

You’d need to risk $550 to profit just $100.

Due to the unusual nature of this fight and the lopsided odds, we suggest including a Fury win in a parlay, possibly incorporating it into one of your Week 8 NFL bets.

Puncher’s Chance

Ngannou opened as a significant underdog against Fury due to his lack of professional boxing experience. Still, Ngannou has a chance due to his power. The odds reflect the low-probability event that Ngannou connects on Fury and finishes him.

The Cameroon native is an MMA knockout artist of the highest order and has delivered some of that sport’s most devastating highlight-reel finishes.

However, Ngannou started his career winning MMA fights more often by submission than knockout. Once he reached the UFC, his so-called “death touch” was on display.

Ngannou is on a short list of fighters to have never lost their UFC championship. In 2023, “The Predator” declined the UFC’s best offers in contract negotiations and took his world-class talent to the Professional Fighters League (PFL), a rival MMA organization.

Under the PFL deal, Ngannou can fight boxers outside the PFL banner.

Who Will Ngannou Fight Next In MMA?

Ngannou doesn’t have a PFL debut opponent. His next fight will be in boxing against Fury.

As for his next MMA fight, the easy choice would be the winner of PFL’s 2023 heavyweight season. A new champion is crowned after winning four fights in one calendar year, with a $1 million prize on the line.

Ngannou won’t participate in the season format with the PFL but instead will be the face of the promotion’s upcoming pay-per-view events. PFL plans to host two big pay-per-view events outside its seasonal format starting in 2024.

PFL seasons start around April and conclude late in the year. That timeline would provide a solid window for the eventual PFL heavyweight champion to prepare for the world’s No. 1 MMA heavyweight in Ngannou.

The PPV events have already been postponed from the originally planned 2023 launch. The PFL has since admitted that it wasn’t ready to pull the trigger, leading one to believe they want to add as much starpower to the first show as possible.

The remaining names in the 2023 PFL heavyweight season won’t do the trick in terms of helping Ngannou bring in the most eyeballs. Signing another notable name is a possibility.

Unfortunately for the PFL, there aren’t many quality options at MMA heavyweight on the open market. The best bet could be former UFC champions like Junior dos Santos or Fabricio Werdum. However, Ngannou already has a MMA knockout win over dos Santos.

Francis Ngannou MMA Record

Ngannou earned the nickname “The Predator” for a reason. When trapped in the cage with him, it was often the hunter versus the prey.

At 17-3 over his 10-year MMA career, Ngannou has only won once by decision and owns a highlight reel for the ages. Ngannou’s last UFC win proved a comeback grappling effort after dropping two close-fought rounds to Ciryl Gane of France.

The French challenger closed as the betting favorite at -160 to the champion’s +114 odds, thanks to his light and mobile striking style. Ultimately, Ngannou used his improved wrestling while competing with multiple torn ligaments in his knee to secure his first UFC title defense.

The Stipe Miocic rematch might not be Ngannou’s greatest highlight, but it was arguably his greatest moment. Ngannou’s improved takedown defense made him a terror for Miocic.

Ngannou thwarted Miocic’s attempts in round one, and Miocic was met with devastating punches for his failures. Early in round two, a brief exchange got Miocic too excited, and he ran into a catastrophic punch. Ngannou folded him for the finish.

“And new,” Bruce Buffer announced before shouting Ngannou’s name as he righted the wrong from his 2018 loss to Miocic. Ngannou cashed in as the -144 favorite.

Across his stretch of wins until his second UFC title shot, Ngannou wasted no time inside the cage. In four fights, Ngannou knocked out Curtis Blaydes and Jairzinho Rozenstruik, as well as former champions Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos. Most impressively, the Cameroonian needed only two minutes and 46 seconds against dos Santos.

You could watch Ngannou’s UFC win catalog in a single sitting. Andrei Arlovski and Alistair Overeem brutally fell against Ngannou before he earned his first title shot in 2018.

Ngannou launched Arlovski off the ground, whereas Overeem’s head-snapping loss is one of the most violent one-shot knockouts in combat sports history. As a decent-sized favorite against each, Ngannou delivered with moneylines greater than -200 and -400, respectively.

He also has an impressive submission on his UFC resume. In only his second octagon appearance, Ngannou pulled off a standing Kimura over Anthony Hamilton.