TYSON FURY has unveiled a surprise new tactic ahead of his exhibition fight with UFC star Francis Ngannou.
The two are set to face off in a ten-round exhibition bout in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on October 28.
YOUTUBE @@TNTSportsBoxingFury has claimed he is training twice as long for Ngannou as he did for Wilder[/caption]
Ngannou was the UFC Heavyweight champion before leaving the organisationGetty
Fury and Ngannou sat down to discuss the fight on TNT Sports with Carl Frampton, with the atmosphere between the two generally being one of respect.
When Frampton asked if Ngannou’s untrained boxing style could give Fury any cause for concern, he said he is taking that consideration very seriously – and is changing his training to prepare for that.
Fury said: “This is why I’m putting in a 12 week training camp instead of a six week camp which I usually do for like, Wilder, White or Chisora.
“I usually do six weeks, but I’m giving Francis 100 per cent focus. And because he’s not a boxer and he’s coming across from a different background, I have to prepare more.
“Because with normal boxers, I can prepare but with his [Ngannou’s] awkward style, he can come from different directions so I have to be prepared for that and that’s why I’m training as hard as I can and giving it 100 per cent respect.”
When Frampton asked how Ngannou reacted to hearing Fury has put in extra prep for him, he said: “Well he’s showed he’s very smart. He know it’s going to be a fight unlike what some people are thinking.
“I’ve been preparing for more than twelve weeks because this is my first boxing training camp and there’s a lot of things I’m trying to understand as far as boxing is concerned.
“The goal is to get there ready and give him a war.”
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Despite coming into the fight having never boxed before, Ngannou had one of the most impressive records in the UFC before leaving the organisation.
The Predator had a 17-3-0 career and was the organisation’s reigning heavyweight champion until January this year.
Ngannou left the organisation after failing to come to terms with Dana White over a new pay deal and was subsequently stripped of his belt.
Given there is no MMA organisation close in quality to the UFC, that left Ngannou stuck for what to do in the sport he’s been so successful in.
That’s made Ngannou a big potential fish in crossover boxing events and Fury is the first boxer to make a fight with him happen.
Fury currently holds the WBO heavyweight belt and is considered by most to be the lineal heavyweight champion in boxing.
The Morecambe resident will have to wait until he fights Oleksandr Usyk on December 23 to see if he can unify the division, however.
Although that fight is now in doubt after Usyk revealed how he hopes to prepare for any unification clash.
No belts are on the line for his exhibition bout with Ngannou.
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