UFC star Conor McGregor heads to Saudi Arabia for Francis Ngannou vs. Tyson Fury showdown
Irish megastar Conor McGregor will be heading to the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh to take in Saturday’s highly anticipated boxing match between heavyweight pugilist Tyson Fury and former UFC champion Francis Ngannou.
Airing live on ESPN+ pay-per-view, Ngannou will make his professional boxing debut nearly two years removed from his last appearance inside the Octagon. Reportedly banking upwards of $10 million for the 10-round bout, ‘The Predator’ will face reigning WBC heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury. Unfortunately, Fury’s title won’t be on the line, but a heap of bragging rights will certainly be at stake between the two heavy hitters.
That’s enough for former two-division UFC champ Conor McGregor who recently confirmed that he had accepted an invite to attend this weekend’s festivities.
“What’s up guys, the notorious Conor McGregor here,” the Irishman announced in a voice note on X. Just getting on to happily announce I will be heading to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia early AM tomorrow for the big blockbuster fight between boxer Tyson Fury and Mixed Martial Artist Francis Ngannou.
“Crossover boxing. MMA ventures over to boxing once again and this time in the Kingdom and this time with the heavyweights. So excited to be there and can’t wait to touchdown in Saudi Arabia and see what the country has to offer and I appreciate the invite sincerely and I look forward to it so much” (h/t Irish Mirror)
Conor McGregor Believes the Presence of Mike Tyson Could Be the Difference Maker in Saudi Arabia
In a follow-up post, McGregor shared his analysis of the crossover clash and suggested that Ngannou’s coach for the fight, ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson, could very well be the ace in the hole that sways things in the Cameroonian’s favor.
“Tyson looks great in the build-up he looks fast, light, and elusive,” McGregor said. “It could be a seriously stellar performance from Tyson Fury here. What’s the variable in this? The Mike Tyson variable in Francis Ngannou’s corner is very interesting. Francis has power, Francis has big power with a striker’s mentality if it gets a bit tougher for him in the later rounds, the striker mentality will stand to him than if it was a Mixed Martial Artist mentality.”
Emanating from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the event will air live on ESPN+ pay-per-view with the main card kicking off a 2 p.m. ET. Main event ring walks are expected to commence at roughly 5:40 p.m. ET.
