Teddy Atlas weighed in on Ciryl Gane comparing his upcoming fight with Francis Ngannou to the recently concluded Tyson Fury vs Deontay Wilder 3
Ciryl Gane is expected to face Francis Ngannou for the heavyweight title at UFC 270 in January, next year.
‘Bon Gamin’ recently became the interim heavyweight champion after he finished the dangerous Derrick Lewis at UFC 265.
In a recent interview with Submission Radio, Gane revealed that he was not scared of Ngannou’s out-of-the-world punching power, and compared his fight with the Cameroonian to the recently concluded trilogy between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder.
Fury vs Wilder 3 was predominantly skill vs power, and in the end, it was Fury’s skill that got him the W.
Elsewhere, legendary boxing trainer Teddy Atlas caught up with Submission Radio and was asked to give his verdict on Gane comparing his fight with Ngannou to Fury-Wilder 3.
While Atlas did agree to the fact that Wilder was all about power, he did not agree to the fact that Ngannou was similar too. He said so because he had seen how much Ngannou had improved (skill and technique-wise) in his title rematch against Stipe Miocic at UFC 260.
He was quoted as saying:
“Before he won the title, Ngannou was just a tough, strong son of a gun. But, he matured…He got better. And, he was a lot better…When he beat him [Stipe Miocic], he didn’t beat him just because he was bigger, stronger, great puncher. He beat him because he was better than he had been technically.”
Teddy Atlas’ advice for Francis Ngannou
Teddy Atlas had a piece of advice for Francis Ngannou. He stated that Ngannou must not get into a wild punch-fest against Gane who is “more than just a tough guy.”
Atlas feared that it might be a case of Fury-Wilder 3 if Ngannou gets himself into a “firefight.”
Here is what Atlas had to say:
“Ngannou has improved. But, he better improve some more. He better continue improving. And he better not get himself into a firefight, where he’s just depending on his power.”
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