Former undisputed heavyweight champion Mike Tyson believes Francis Ngannou, a former UFC champion, will do better than many people expect when he takes on Tyson Fury.
Ngannou will face the unbeaten WBC champion in a non-title match on October 28 in Saudi Arabia.
While Ngannou is a tremendous underdog, Tyson expects him to do better than many observers predict.
"I think he's going to do very well, yes,” Tyson said to Eurosport Netherlands. "It's all experience in fighting, he just has to remember not to use his feet, which he never really did actually. He's a real power puncher, really fast for a big guy at 260 [pounds]. I think he's going to do better than most people believe."
Former world champion Carl Frampton explained that Ngannou needs to eliminate any distance between him and Fury to have a chance.
“He needs to try to get close. If he does get close, I know it’s boxing, but use his wrestling strength to rough him up a bit, throw him around a bit, try and impose his strength. It’s easier said than done when you’re facing Fury, who’s a monster of a man," Frampton told TNT Sports.
“If there’s distance at all created, Tyson Fury will just... I mean it’ll just be a field day. Get close, crowd him, use your strength and pray to god that you can land the luckiest punch you’ve ever thrown in your life."
Fury has been out of the ring since last December, when he battered and stopped Derek Chisora in their trilogy fight. There were attempts to secure several other opponents, like Oleksandr Usyk, Anthony Joshua, Zhilei Zhang and Andy Ruiz - but for one reason or another none of those opponents panned out.