"I think this is evil" - Francis Ngannou denies former coach's claim that he tried to stop UFC from signing Ciryl Gane

Francis Ngannou has responded to recent claims made by his former coach, MMA Factory’s Fernand Lopez, that he discouraged the UFC from signing Ciryl Gane. Ngannou has asserted that Lopez’s allegations suggest that he’s trying to destroy him.

‘The Predator’ opined that what his former head coach is doing to him is “evil.” In a video posted to his official YouTube channel, Francis Ngannou stated:

“And recently, I saw something about him. They sent me something like, which his coach said about me – Fernand [Lopez] – He said I told [UFC matchmaker] Mick [Maynard] that Ciryl is good but not that good or something like that. I’m like, ‘Man. This, like; this nasty.’ You know, this is not a fair game anymore. It’s not a fair game anymore. Like, I understand this position is not; you want to take everything, you want to destroy somebody. But to go after him like that, associate other people; I mean, I think this is evil. You know, but I know the man, and I know how it processed.”

Watch Francis Ngannou address his former coach Fernand Lopez’s allegations in the video below:

Fernand Lopez recently appeared on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani and suggested that Francis Ngannou had tried to stop the UFC from signing Ciryl Gane a few years back. Lopez said:

“[UFC matchmaker] Mick [Maynard] asked him if Ciryl Gane is good…I said he’s a little bit good, but not good enough yet to go to the UFC. That’s coming from Francis Ngannou’s mouth.” (*Quotes courtesy: MMA Fighting)

Watch Fernand Lopez’s conversation with Ariel Helwani in the video below:

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Michael Bisping on the power vs. finesse UFC 270 matchup between Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane

UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping recently broke down the upcoming Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane title matchup. ‘The Count’ emphasized that this fight represents a clash between Ngannou’s power and Gane’s finesse. Bisping said:

"Ciryl Gane. Francis Ngannou. I think what we've got there, it's power vs. finesse. That's not to say Francis doesn't have any finesse. Of course, he does. He's extremely athletic. Extremely explosive. But the advantage that he has is the punching power. Okay. Ciryl Gane is much more poetic in his movements.”

The former UFC middleweight champion explained that Ciryl Gane moves very gracefully but can also unleash serious KO power when needed.

Reigning UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou will fight interim UFC heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 on January 22nd. The winner of this matchup will walk away as the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion and is likely to defend the title against Jon Jones next.