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Francis Ngannou's coach Eric Nicksick has offered an interesting take whilst comparing Ciryl Gane to Jon Jones.
During a recent interview with Damon Martin from MMA Fighting, Eric Nicksick was asked whether Ciryl Gane posed a bigger threat to Ngannou compared to Jon Jones. 'Bones' relinquished the light-heavyweight title after his unanimous decision win against Dominick Reyes at UFC 247, and has been planning a move up to heavyweight since then.
Eric Nicksick asserted that Ciryl Gane is a natural heavyweight, unlike Jon Jones, who still has to figure things out in the division. Declaring 'Bon Gamin' as the more 'suitable' opponent at heavyweight for Ngannou, Nicksick said:
"I think here's a guy who carries this weight naturally in Cyril Gane, he's a natural heavyweight. We're talking Jon Jones who's now trying to put weight on to get up to that heavyweight division. And how is that gonna look for him when it comes to understanding the body mechanics and you know the cardio and all those things when you're really the one time you're gonna figure that out is in the cage."
He continued:
"I mean you can have sparring and everything else but for him to figure this out on the fly, for Jon Jones to move up to heavyweight and feel what heavyweight power feels like and the movement and all those things I think it's gonna be a tall task for him. So when you look at the guy who's probably best suited for the heavyweight division to fight for the heavyweight title, its gonna be Ciryl Gane in mhy opinion."
Watch Eric Nicksick's full interview with MMA Fighting below:
Francis Ngannou's future with the UFC is still uncertain
Francis Ngannou is set to take on Ciryl Gane in his first title defense at UFC 270. Interestingly, this also happens to be the last fight on his contract.
As of now, a new deal has not been signed by the Cameroonian. Clearly, there is a lot riding on the outcome of his fight against 'Bon Gamin'. If Ngannou retains the title, the championship clause will kick in which will allow him to stay with the UFC for three more fights or for the duration of one year.
Francis Ngannou has revealed that he wants a pay bump to continue with the UFC regardless of whether he retains the title or not come fight night. It remains to be seen what will happen when 'The Predator' takes on Ciryl Gane at UFC 270.
