“If It Was for Me, Without Doubt Top Ten”: Not Ranked Yet, WBC President Opens Up on Francis Ngannou Position in the Heavyweight Division

Here’s a scoop that has the heavyweight division buzzing with excitement! Just a few weeks ago, two heavyweight titans collided in the squared circle. Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou went toe-to-toe with ‘The Gypsy King’ Tyson Fury. In an unexpected twist, ‘The Predator’ delivered a beating to the lineal heavyweight champion, nearly taking home the win.

Naturally, a question echoed through the boxing world – where will Ngannou be ranked in the pound-for-pound rankings? While appearing in a recent interview with ES News, the president of WBC, Mauricio Sulaimán, shed light on where he feels Ngannou appears in the coveted list of the best in boxing. While Sulaimán isn’t the sole authority on creating the rankings, his thoughts may very well predict the future. 

Mauricio Sulaimán praises Francis Ngannou and holds him in high regard

Speaking to Elie Seckbach, Mauricio revealed that if choosing the fighters for the rankings was up to him, Ngannou would be among the top ten. “If it was for me, without a doubt, top ten,” said Mauricio. However, he asserted that the rankings aren’t up to him; rather, it’s a committee that has the sole discretion. “It’s a rating committee. They are the ones that have the discretion,” said the WBC president.

Despite not having a say in choosing the fighters in the rankings, Mauricio highlighted Ngannou’s performance during the fight to indicate the chances of him ranking high. “What I saw live. Fighting with an unbelievable chin, unbelievable punching power, knock down Tyson Fury, lost a split decision. You can not argue against that,” said Mauricio. While Francis Ngannou establishes himself as one of the best boxers and gets a shoutout, Fury takes a tumble.

Tyson Fury falls down pound-for-pound rankings

Tyson Fury might have won the fight, but his lackluster performance resulted in a fall in the rankings. It came as the result of the third-round knockdown Ngannou scored on Fury and the fact that the decision was so close. As to where Fury appears in the rankings now, he dropped four spots to No. 10. Even the commentators cited Fury’s disappointing performance and technical flaws

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According to Joe Tessitore and Teddy Atlas from ESPN’s panel, Fury’s mental preparedness and technical shortfall forced them to lower his ranking. Terrance Crawford currently leads the list, with Naoya Inoue and Oleskandr Usyk trailing in the second and third position. 

Do you think Ngannou deserves a spot in the top ten? Does Fury’s drop in the rankings seem fair?

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