"Isn’t it important to treat people right?" - Legendary trainer Teddy Atlas calls Francis Ngannou out for not being "decent" while asking for training
Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou left the promotion in pursuit of greater autonomy over his fighting endeavors. He is set to bring one of those ideas to life with his boxing crossover matchup against WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.
The two will take on each other on October 28 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in what will be Ngannou's boxing debut.
To prepare for the fight, Francis Ngannou's team had approached legendary trainer Teddy Atlas who has cornered greats like Michael Moorer and Barry McGuigan. Atlas revealed the news on his podcast THE FIGHT and outlined his policy towards training fighters.
“Ngannou’s people had asked me about the possibility of training him. Obviously, I just don’t train anyone – even if it’s a pile of oil money in the sand, it’s just obviously a score. But I’m not going to train someone unless I get to be around them and think they’re a good person, and think they’re coachable... My way is that I’m going to spend a couple of days with you. I’m not going to say yes or no until I go through the trial period."
However, after returning from meeting with Ngannou, Atlas found out that he was no longer wanted to train the fighter. He also learned that Mike Tyson was going to replace him and lamented about the lack of transparency from Ngannou's camp.
"The next day, my son sends me a thing that they’re getting Mike Tyson to train him... So all right. I treat him like a gentleman, but obviously you made that deal with Tyson... Why won’t you be up front with me? It just don’t feel good... Can’t we be better as people? I know money is money and that’s important, but isn’t it important to treat people right? Isn’t it important to keep your word? Isn't it important to just... being decent with your fellow human being."
Teddy Atlas says Francis Ngannou is "infatuated" with Mike Tyson
Mike Tyson has been training Francis Ngannou ahead of his showdown against Tyson Fury. 'The Predator' also posted a clip of himself with the legendary boxer on his Instagram.
Teddy Atlas also mentioned Francis Ngannou's extreme love for Mike Tyson on his podcast, while remarking that Tyson's addition to his entourage is a great marketing move.
"I’m sure that it’s going to bring extra pay-per-view buys at the very least, and look, Tyson was a tremendous fighter. We get it. And Ngannou is infatuated by him. He’s obsessed with Tyson. He wanted me to show him how to throw the Tyson uppercut, which I did."
Check out Teddy Atlas' full comments on his podcast on YouTube (3:40):