Former boxing champion Carl Frampton gushes over Francis Ngannou’s performance against Tyson Fury

Ex-boxing world champion Carl Frampton has some high praise for Francis Ngannou following his impressive showing against Tyson Fury.

Ngannou was expecting to fold against Fury in their boxing match, but stunned fight fans despite not leaving Saudi Arabia with a win. Ngannou was competitive against the general consensus best heavyweight in the world, and even scored a knockdown. Ultimately, Ngannou fell short via split decision.

RELATED: KAMARU USMAN ON FRANCIS NGANNOU’S SPLIT DECISION LOSS TO TYSON FURY: “THE JUDGES ARE GOING TO DO WHAT THEY’RE GOING TO DO”

Francis Ngannou Receives Praise From Carl Frampton

During the post-fight show on TNT Sports, Carl Frampton gushed over Ngannou’s performance (via MMAFighting).

“I thought that Francis Ngannou won that fight,” Frampton said. “At times, I couldn’t believe what I was watching and I think we’ve all done it. People who were picking Tyson Fury to win this fight and win it clearly, we were doing it rationally, we were trying to think rationally.

“This is a guy in Francis Ngannou coming in to his first boxing match and fighting the heavyweight champion of the world, how was he supposed to win? In my eyes, he won the fight. I think Tyson maybe overlooked him. He struggled with his style, he was very awkward. We all thought Francis was going to come and swing. He boxed beautifully at times.”

Ngannou has been lauded by many within the boxing and MMA communities for his efforts. He certainly has allowed himself to enjoy more lucrative paydays down the road, as he’s now a hot ticket in not just MMA, but in boxing. Promoter Eddie Hearn has already suggested a potential matchup between Ngannou and former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua.

Despite the loss, Ngannou is largely viewed as a winner for betting on himself and giving Fury all he could handle.