Francis Ngannou is eligible for a shot at the WBC heavyweight championship after taking current ruler Tyson Fury the distance.
The Nigerian powerhouse dropped Fury on his way to a ten-round points loss in Saudia Arabia last month.
As a result, the World Boxing Council has deemed Ngannou worthy of a place among the world’s elite boxers.
WBC Ratings Committee chiefs announced the move to the media at the ongoing Convention in Uzbekistan.
Francis Ngannou eligible for WBC title shot
Ngannou joins Deontay Wilder, Jared Anderson, and Joseph Parker in the voluntary positions. Fury can choose any of the top fifteen when a mandatory challenger isn’t due.
Fury has stated he will give Ngannou a rematch after he’s fought Oleksandr Usyk twice in undisputed clashes. If Fury wins, this will lead to the Ngannou return having at least one belt on the line.
To fight for the undisputed crown, Ngannou would have to lobby the WBO, IBF, and WBA for the opportunity. However, should he beat a highly-ranked contender during the interim, Ngannou would gain approval without it.
There is one massive flaw in the master plan, though. Fury will have mandatories stacked up after Usyk. He will have to give Filip Hrgovic and Zhilei Zhang their opportunities before Ngannou.
Therefore, Fury may likely have to give up all the titles, except the WBC version, before facing Ngannou.
So far, the WBC has looked favorably on Fury vs Ngannou. Due to this positivity, President Mauricio Sulaiman will allow the rematch to occur before ordering their own mandatory.
Wilder and Anthony Joshua currently occupy one and two ahead of a proposed fight in 2024. The winner will get the chance to face Fury, but the likelihood is that it will happen after Ngannou II in 2025.
Fury’s last mandatory came against Dillian Whyte in the spring of 2022.
WBC Heavyweight Rankings – November 2023
1. Deontay Wilder
2. Anthony Joshua
3. Arslanbek Makhmudov
4. Frank Sanchez
5. Efe Ajagba
6. Jared Anderson
7. Martin Bakole
8. Joseph Parker
9. Otto Wallin
10. Francis Ngannou
Phil Jay is an experienced boxing news writer.
Editor of World Boxing News since 2010.
