Footage of Mike Tyson training Francis Ngannou for his boxing debut against Tyson Fury has been shared by the heavyweight great.
MMA sensation Ngannou is making his debut inside the squared circle on Saturday October 28 against the current WBC world heavyweight champion.
The flare-up will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and former UFC champion Ngannou has called upon one of the very best in the business to get him ready for Fury.
Tyson, the youngest heavyweight champion in history, has been training ‘Predator’ and posted snippets of their Las Vegas sessions on social media.
‘Iron’ Mike was seen mentoring on how to approach hitting uppercuts on the pads, throwing medicine balls into his abdomen and passing on words of wisdom.
At the very start of the clip, Tyson can be heard telling the Cameroonian, “You know this is just the beginning. You hear me, Francis? This is just the beginning.”
He also instructed him to relax his arms when on the pads, having given him a quite brilliant demonstration at the ripe old age of 57.
The clip was captioned: “We’re just getting started @francis_ngannou, remember that” and it appears as though we will see the full story of training as part of a series called “Molding a champion”.
Ngannou was released by UFC in June and made a lucrative move to the PFL (Professional Fighters League).
The 36-year-old has always had dreams of competing in boxing in addition to MMA and believes Tyson’s involvement in his camp is vital.
“Bringing Mike Tyson into my training camp is one of the best decisions I can make to prepare for Tyson Fury in the ring at this year’s Riyadh Season,” Ngannou said.
“Mike Tyson is an idol of mine in the sport. His experience and boxing IQ will be important to honing my technique under his guidance to win this super fight.”
Tyson has said a win for Ngannou will be a bigger upset than when Buster Douglas inflicted his first ever career defeat in the Tokyo Dome back in 1990.
However, undefeated Fury is full of confidence going into the slugfest, firing back and saying: “Everyone has a plan until… these Lancaster Bombers hit you square in the face come fight night.”
The bout will be contested under boxing rules but Fury”s WBC belt is not on the line.
