Zheilei Zhang reacts following Francis Ngannou’s turndown

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Heavyweight boxer Zheilei Zhang revealed his thoughts following Francis Ngannou’s refusal to have a match with him.

According to Zhang’s reply to the Daily Mail, there were efforts going on behind the scenes to establish an agreement between him and the Cameroonian.

‘There were originally talks to have me fight Ngannou [on December 23], and I was like, ‘Okay, it’s a walk in the park for me; I’ll take it,’ said Zhang.

‘But Ngannou didn’t want to do it. And then it’s what you see. The big names started to come in, like Joshua filling the card. And that’s what happened.’

Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou became a bigger star after nearly beating WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury on October 28 in a fight that was Ngannou’s debut boxing match.

Fury won by a controversial split decision, but Ngannou announced that unless there was a rematch, he would not fight another boxer. Maybe this was why Ngannou rejected Zhang’s offer.

However, Zhang claimed a big event was coming up in China next year in which he would be one of the fighters. He also said he would fight anyone he was given to fight.

‘I believe everyone is busy with their schedule, but I’m someone that whoever you put in front of me, I’ll fight. It’s up to [my] team.

‘I think it’s coming [a big fight in China] in 2024; people will see something like that. People behind the scenes are working very hard every day trying to push this, and I believe in 2024 we will see a high-level world title fight. Everyone is invited.

‘I have a strong feeling that something big is coming, and I want everyone to stay tuned. If you’re watching my fight I’m not going to let you down.’

Ngannou will likely confine his action to the octagon till further notice.