Francis Ngannou offers reaction to Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson: “He can still kick some ass!”

Francis Ngannou was just as surprised as everyone else to see Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson going down in the boxing ring.

‘The Predator’ is currently slated to return to boxing this Friday night in Saudi Arabia. For Francis Ngannou, the fight will be the second in the ring, as he faces former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua. Last October, the PFL star made his debut, against Tyson Fury.

For those who remember that bout, they likely remember the build heavily featured Mike Tyson. ‘Iron Mike’ is a longtime friend of Francis Ngannou, and he coached the former UFC champion for his move to boxing. Unfortunately for the PFL star, he still came up short against ‘The Gypsy King’ by split decision.

Just a few months later, Francis Ngannou will have the role of being in Mike Tyson’s corner. Earlier today, Jake Paul announced plans to fight the legendary boxer on July 20th, in Dallas, Texas. The bout will go down at AT&T Stadium, and be presented live on Netflix. The event will be the first time that the streaming service shows a boxing match.

In a recent interview with MMAJunkie, Francis Ngannou reacted to news of Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson. There, he revealed that ‘Iron Mike’ didn’t tell him about the upcoming announcement, and he found out on social media. When Ngannou saw the fight poster, he couldn’t believe it was real.

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Image via: @francis_ngannou on X

Francis Ngannou reacts to Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson boxing match announcement

“Honestly, I didn’t even know if it was real. I look at it, and it said it was on Netflix, and I thought it was going to be some sort of movie they were making or something.” Francis Ngannou stated in an interview with MMAJunkie, when asked about Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson. “So, I don’t know. I don’t want to make any speculation, let’s see how he comes out and if it’s real and if it will be a real fight. So, I don’t know, it hits me like a shock.”

He continued, “It was maybe one hour earlier that I saw that, so I’m still processing it. As I said, I’m still processing this, so I don’t know where [it’s happening], and I do know when obviously… If it comes out to be true, of course, I’ll be there to support Mike. [He’s 57] but he can still kick some ass, there’s no doubt about it.”

As of now, it’s not known if Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson will be a professional fight. If it is, it’ll be the boxing legend’s first non-exhibition contest since 2005. The boxer famously retired from fighting after a stoppage loss to Kevin McBride that June.

What do you make of these comments from Francis Ngannou? Will you watch Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson? Who do you have in that heavyweight boxing matchup?