Tom Aspinall thinks Francis Ngannou can present a different type of threat for Tyson Fury.
WBC boxing champ Fury takes on former UFC heavyweight champion Ngannou in a 10-round bout Oct. 28 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Aspinall will help Fury prep for Ngannou. He explains that although Ngannou is not a boxer, his unorthodox style of hoisting heavy leather could throw Fury off.
“Well, if you want an inside breakdown from sparring, see, someone like Tyson who’s been boxing all their life, or any boxer who’s been boxing most of their life, a lot of boxers fight very similar,” Aspinall said on Michael Bisping’s “Believe You Me” podcast. “They go double jab, right hand. They go one-two, left hook, stuff like that. It’s not too dissimilar, especially you come through the amateur circuit and you go the Olympic route and all that kind of stuff. A lot of these guys have very, very similar styles.”
Ngannou will seek help from boxing legend Mike Tyson. Aspinall gives Ngannou a puncher’s chance and went as far as saying “The Predator” could pose a bigger threat to Fury than Anthony Joshua, who knocked out Robert Helenius in the seventh round this past Saturday in London.
“When you throw somebody in like a Deontay Wilder, like Francis Ngannou, who’s throwing looping shots and uppercuts and doing all kinds of unorthodox stuff, the boxers aren’t as used to it as they would like – for example, if Tyson Fury boxed Anthony Joshua, it would be the easiest fight ever for him,” Aspinall said. “Easiest fight ever, because he’s so basic.
“He’s going one-two, he’s going double jab, he’s going left hook, right hand. He’s going one-two left hook, basic combinations. Whereas if he’s fighting someone like Wilder, who’s just throwing a big, looping right hook randomly. It’s going to be much harder for a traditional boxer to fight someone more unorthodox. So, I can see Francis bringing a few more problems than somebody like an Anthony Joshua would to Tyson Fury.”
For more on the matchup, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Fury vs. Ngannou.
