A shark in the water - Francis Ngannou's coach says 'The Predator' isn't emotional ahead of fight against Ciryl Gane
Francis Ngannou will face Ciryl Gane in a heavyweight title unifier in the main event of UFC 270. Ngannou's coach Eric Nicksick claims 'The Predator' is not emotionally affected going into the contest against his former teammate.
According to Nicksick, Ngannou is usually not bothered about his opponents and the case is no different with Gane. During an interview with ESPN MMA, Nicksick said he hasn't detected any alarming changes in Ngannou's behavior during the camp.
"He doesn't really show a whole lot of emotion. It's hard to kind of give the right analogy for it but it's almost like a shark just cruising through the water. Not really bothered by anything and at any moment he goes. And it's just like that even in the back and the warm-up. He's just very calm, very collected and I think he's just gathering his thoughts and getting through the process. But man he's shown the same guy that I've seen in the last four fights. Nothing's really stood out to me that has been alarming. He's just this calm, cool, collected guy."
Catch Eric Nicksick's interview with ESPN MMA below:
Francis Ngannou claims to be aware of Ciryl Gane's gameplan
Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane were former training partners at the MMA Factory in Paris. Ngannou moved to Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas after a major falling out with head coach Fernand Lopez.
However, Ngannou is not worried about the possibility of Lopez anticipating his game. Instead, the UFC heavyweight champion believes he can get inside Lopez's mind to know their gameplan against him. Ngannou said in a recent interview with Megan Olivi:
“Well, I think it’s the opposite. I don’t think he [Fernand Lopez] knows anything about me. I think I’m complete different fighter. But I know everything about him. I literally like, can think as him. I know what is his gameplan. I can get in his mind and visualize what exactly he is working on because I know the man. I know how he thinks; more than he might even imagine.”
Catch Francis Ngannou's interview with Megan Olivi below: