Francis Ngannou Gunning for Rico Verhoeven Next ... 'Very Compelling' Fight

Published June 21, 2026 12:30 AM PDT

Francis Ngannou and Rico Verhoeven were both combat sports stars who went into boxing and were arguably screwed by bad decisions ... and now both fighters could find themselves in a ring together, according to The Predator!

TMZ Sports talked to 39-year-old Ngannou, coming off a first-round knockout against Philipe Lins, when we asked him about his next move.

"[Rico] is very compelling. Very interesting. But nothing has been done yet, so I'm looking forward to it," Francis told us.

In fact, before the former UFC heavyweight champ signed on to fight Lins, Verhoeven was nearly his opp ... RV was deep in discussions with Jake Paul's MVP promotions.

Instead, Rico opted to box heavyweight champ Oleksandr Usyk ... and the legendary Dutch kickboxer more than held his own, losing via stoppage in the 11th round.

Verhoeven, who entered the scrap as a -2500 underdog, dominated the early rounds and was winning on the scorecards when the fight was stopped controversially.

Ngannou knows the feeling. He boxed Tyson Fury in October 2023 and lost by split decision. Many fans were perplexed, as Francis more than held his own against one of the GOATs.

So, would Francis and Rico be boxing or MMA? We asked Ngannou.

"Either one. I would like to fight him," he told us.

It remains to be seen if a deal can get done, but Ngannou made it clear, "that's what I have in mind for right now."