Israel Adesanya hopes Francis Ngannou returns to MMA next

Israel Adesanya wants to see Francis Ngannou back in MMA.

Adesanya walked Ngannou out for his crossover boxing match vs. Tyson Fury last month in Saudi Arabia and lost his mind when Ngannou scored a knockdown in Round 3.

Although Ngannou lost, Adesanya acknowledged that his stock is higher than it’s ever been. Ngannou’s name already has been linked to the likes of Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder, but Adesanya would rather Ngannou compete in MMA next.

“Before this fight, no one wanted to watch Francis (box) anyone,” Adesanya said on his YouTube channel. “They were like, ‘He doesn’t have a chance. Never.’ Now he’s a superstar, everybody’s going to be, ‘Of course – fight my guy.’ What do I want to see? I haven’t thought about it, to be honest. But first thing, if I’m being honest, I want to see him in MMA. With who? I don’t know. I wasn’t thinking that far.

“I like fighting, and I like Francis boxing. It’s exciting, yes. … I just want to see him use all f*cking limbs. When we see him in those shorts with those f*cking legs and arms, and he looks like a f*cking juggernaut, slings that leg at someone … Patient Francis hits that jab. That’s my pugilism is mixed martial arts, even though I love boxing. I still want to see him fight (MMA and not just box).”

After parting ways with the UFC, Ngannou signed with PFL which helped facilitate his dream to box. However, even PFL founder Donn Davis admits there aren’t too many options for Ngannou in MMA right now outside of Jon Jones – the UFC’s heavyweight champion. He sees Ngannou boxing in his next fight, but expects him to enter the cage sometime in 2024.

For more on the matchup, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Fury vs. Ngannou.