Francis Ngannou thinks he's the underdog against Ciryl Gane because UFC promoted 'Bon Gamin' more

Francis Ngannou has opened up about the oddsmakers having him as a betting underdog heading into his UFC 270 matchup against Ciryl Gane.

Ngannou indicated that the oddsmakers view him as the underdog – despite him coming off a dominant win and being the reigning UFC heavyweight champion – due to the UFC heavily promoting Gane.

The Cameroon native addressed this in an interview with ESPN MMA. The interviewer, Max Kellerman, pointed out that ‘The Predator’ is the betting underdog ahead of his all-important clash against 'Bon Gamin' at UFC 270. Upon being asked for his views on the same, Ngannou responded by stating:

“Well, usually, I don’t look about those stuff, and I don’t care about it – Because the first time that I lost against Stipe [Miocic], I was the favorite; by far, the favorite. And it didn’t go well on my way. So, that doesn’t matter much. And I think, honestly, I think right here – The reason [behind me being an underdog] is just because in the past month, they’ve been doing everything to promote him, and technically, I would say dis-promote me. And people kind of like, sleep on my performance and forget about me.”

UFC heavyweight champion Ngannou will fight interim UFC heavyweight champion Gane at UFC 270 on January 22nd. The fight’s winner will walk away as the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion.

Watch Francis Ngannou’s conversation with Max Kellerman in the video below:

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Henry Cejudo on Francis Ngannou’s dispute with the UFC potentially hurting him against Ciryl Gane

In a recent edition of The Triple C & Schmo Show, Henry Cejudo offered his advice to Francis Ngannou concerning ‘The Predator’s’ ongoing fighter pay dispute with the UFC.

Francis Ngannou has been lobbying to get paid better for his UFC bouts. Ngannou’s upcoming fight is the last on his current UFC contract, and he’s hinted that he’d like his new UFC contract to let him compete in boxing as well.

On that note, Henry Cejudo – who himself has lately been at odds with the UFC over a possible comeback – advised Ngannou to stay focused on his fight. The former UFC flyweight and bantamweight champion opined that Ngannou’s dispute with the promotion could distract him and lead to him being beaten by Gane. ‘Triple C’ said:

"He has to be careful because there's a lot of stress there when it comes to you talking about money and things like that. You should probably bring it up at the very end and I wouldn't have that money factor before you go in there and you're going to fight because Ciryl Gane is no dummy."