Fans condemn the opening ceremony ahead of Tyson Fury’s ‘Battle of the Baddest’ fight against Francis Ngannou as ‘pure rubbish’ and claim they ‘came for a fight, not a concert’

Boxing fans have praised the opening ceremony ahead of the ‘Battle of the Baddest’ clash between Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou in Saudi Arabia, with some calling it ‘pure rubbish’.

Although several fights had already taken place on the undercard and Fabio Wardley retained his British heavyweight title by stopping David Adeleye in round seven, the ring fell beneath the stadium and a concert ensued.

The lights went down in the Boulevard Hall and Lil Baby and Becky G took the stage surrounded by dancers.

The ring slowly emerged from the ground towards the end of the show, but boxing fans went wild as the ceremony dragged on, with some calling it “pure garbage.”

One fan took to Twitter (formerly

Fans applauded the opening ceremony ahead of Tyson Fury’s fight against Francis Ngannou

Many took to X (formerly Twitter) to lambast the pre-fight conversation, with one claiming it was “pure rubbish”.

Fury was seen at TNT Sports Box Office putting on a crown and cape as he prepared to head to the ring

The ceremony continued and several empty seats were spotted in the crowd.

Another wrote: “I hope there is never an opening ceremony for a boxing match again.”

The performance lasted several minutes as fans waited in anticipation for the main event and spectators waited for the highly anticipated main event.

“The opening ceremony will end up being ten times longer than the actual fight,” one described the opening ceremony as a “joke,” before adding, “Do the fight, I almost fell asleep!”

“Imagine if Saudi Arabia hosted the Olympics. “Their opening ceremony would be amazing,” said another.

After the ceremony concluded, the fighters exited their dressing rooms, with both fighters putting on a crown before entering the ring.

Some famous names from the world of sports were present at the crossover fight, including Cristiano Ronaldo and Ronaldo Nazario, who were both present at ringside.

Oleksandr Usyk, Fury’s next opponent, was also seen watching from the crowd.

The highly anticipated fight will take place in Saudi Arabia where the two will face off

Other fans were left scratching their heads at the ceremony, with one claiming: “It’ll end up taking about 10 times longer than the fight.”

At the start of the concert, Lil Baby and Becky G took the stage accompanied by dancers and a light show to the music

The MMA star will step into the boxing ring for the first time in his career, but Fury’s WBC heavyweight belts will not be on the line in this fight.

Speaking to TNT Sports earlier this week, the Gypsy King said he was looking forward to the fight and admitted he would smash Ngannou’s face in.

“I’m in shape like an Adonis ready to punch someone right in the face,” Fury said ahead of the fight.

Asked if he liked Ngannou, he said: “Well, he’s not the nicest guy in the world that night, I’m going to criticize him.”

“We’re worst enemies for 30 minutes – and then we can be best friends.”