Watch: Francis Ngannou shuts down reporter who misquotes him regarding Ciryl Gane ahead of UFC 270

In the lead-up to UFC 270, Francis Ngannou stated that Stipe Miocic was his toughest challenge, not Ciryl Gane. However, at the press conference, a reporter misquoted Ngannou to Gane and said that 'The Predator' expected to have a "pretty easy" fight against 'Bon Gamin'.

Ngannou quickly put the reporter in his place. The Cameroonian confirmed that Miocic was his toughest opponent relative to the rest of the field but that didn't make Gane an easy fight.

Here's the reporter's original question:

"He [Ngannou] said that Miocic was his biggest fight, his toughest fight. And with you [Gane] it would be pretty easy. How do you feel about that?

Francis Ngannou replied:

"Excuse me, sir. Where did you read that when I said Ciryl is a pretty easy fight? I mean I'm very confused... Did I ever say Ciryl is an easy fight? I didn't say that... Toughest, meaning tougher than the others. Toughest, meaning others are tough but someone is the toughest. That's not an easy fight, my friend. If you ever fight in your life, you'll know that. Please be very accurate when you ask questions."

Here's a video of the entire exchange:

Francis Ngannou is the UFC heavyweight champion and is set to make his first title defense at UFC 270. 'The Predator' goes up against interim champion Ciryl Gane, who is undefeated in his MMA career.

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Francis Ngannou thinks Ciryl Gane is the favorite heading into UFC 270 because 'Bon Gamin' has been promoted more

The shadow of Francis Ngannou's contract negotiations looms over his clash with Ciryl Gane at UFC 270. Another major narrative heading into this week's pay-per-view is 'The Predator' going up against his former coach Fernand Lopez. The two didn't part ways on the best of terms.

The Cameroonian star has been installed as a betting underdog heading into his clash with Gane. He believes this is because the UFC has opted to put its promotional muscle behind 'Bon Gamin' due to Ngannou's contractual dispute. During an interview with ESPN's Max Kellerman, he said:

“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.”

If Francis Ngannou can overcome Ciryl Gane, he will have one more fight left on his contract. If he cannot come to an agreement with the UFC, he will test the waters of free agency.

Check out Ngannou's interview on ESPN MMA: