Tyson Fury was brutally honest in his first interview since his split decision victory over Francis Ngannou.
On Sunday Fury edged past Ngannou with a contentious split-decision victory after a 10-round bout in Saudi Arabia.
Despite being knocked down in the third round, Fury took the result 96-93 and 95-94 on two of the judges' cards, with the other judge having it 95-94 for UFC heavyweight champion Ngannou.
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Ngannou was boxing as a pro for the first time, while Fury is an unbeaten WBC and lineal champion, widely regarded as the leading heavyweight in the sport.
When asked by Boxing King Media if he had underestimated his opponent, Fury, who was sporting a black eye, said: “You can’t take anything away from Francis Ngannou
“He was a good fighter and he gave me a good fight and that was it. I trained very well, I prepared very well and I don’t have any excuses or anything.
“It’s boxing. Some days you have good days and some days you don’t, and you crack on and continue and keep moving forward.”
He continued: “Usually when you get the media saying, ‘It’s a mismatch and it’s not worth watching’ you’re in for a tough night.
“And if I didn’t train as hard as I did I wouldn’t have got through that fight.”
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When asked how hard Ngannou punched compared to Fury’s previous opposition, the fighter explained: “He punches hard but it was a hook in the back of the head, the knockdown in round three.
“Apart from that he didn’t get me with much else.”
On his own performance, Fury said: “I felt my timing was quite off. I’d been out of the ring for nearly a year again. It was a little bit of ring rust. It was what it was.
“It was far from one of my best performances. It wasn’t a vintage Tyson Fury but listen you do what you’ve got to do in there to get through and on to the next one.”
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He continued: “I don’t know about bad night because that’s taking something away from Francis Ngannou’s performance. He did very well and that’s it really.
“It’s boxing. You can be the best version of yourself every time.”
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Topics: Boxing, Francis Ngannou, Tyson Fury
Chris Byfield