Tom Aspinall says Francis Ngannou is ‘very unlikely’ to win boxing fights against Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua after leaving UFC

Tom Aspinall thinks it’s unlikely Francis Ngannou gets his wish and ends up in either Tyson Fury or Anthony Joshua’s box.

The former UFC heavyweight champion was recently let go by MMA’s premier promotion after lengthy talks about a contract extension and a fight with Jon Jones.

However, Ngannou and the UFC couldn’t see eye to eye, and parted ways leaving the heavyweight division without a champion until March 4 at UFC 285, when Jon Jones fought Cyril Gaine.

Since leaving the UFC, the Cameroonian knockout artist has publicly said he hopes to cross over to boxing to fight the likes of Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.

Aspinall does not intend to outright dismiss Ngannou due to the nature of the heavyweight fight, but believes he has little chance of defeating the British boxing superstar.

He told talkSPORT: In other words, everyone has a chance. I think it’s a very slim chance, especially when it comes to heavyweights.

“[It’s tough] Boxing is only a small part of our game when we MMA fighters, boxing only specialists, are boxing. is a completely different sport.

“I think it’s definitely great for his career and he definitely has a chance to win, but I don’t think the chance is that great to be honest.”

Fury, who invited Ngannou to the ring last April after defeating Dillian White at Wembley Stadium, has welcomed a potential fight with the former UFC champion.

The “Gypsy King” has expressed his willingness to fight Ngannou wearing 4-ounce MMA gloves in a hybrid-rule cage that Aspinall believes will make the match more interesting.

He added: Boxers are obviously very familiar with the ring. Because he, he fought only in the ring. The cage is completely different.

“In the cage, you can’t ride a punch the same way you can in the ring.

“It definitely evens it out quite a bit.

“It’s definitely more even than fighting in the ring with boxing gloves on.”

Aspinall hasn’t fought since suffering a serious knee injury shortly after his headline fight with Curtis Blaze at UFC London last July.

The 29-year-old recently returned to sparring and is gearing up for a return to MMA, but it’s questionable whether he’ll be added to UFC 286 on March 18 in the English capital.

When asked if he would be able to fight at UFC 286, Aspinall said: You never know, I’m pretty healthy now.

“I’ve only done a little bit of sparring and I’m feeling really good. It’s still a long way off at the moment.

“So I don’t know. I keep my options really open.”

Aspinall was riding an impressive five-game winning streak in the UFC and looked close to a title shot before his career was temporarily derailed by a freak injury.

He probably needs a win or two to get back into title contention and will line himself up to face who will take Naganow’s recently vacated title at UFC 285. .