RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Even though Francis Ngannou is in town to face former two-time unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua on March 8, the first fighter he was questioned about during a media roundtable was the ghost of October past, Tyson Fury.
WATCH: Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou, exclusively live on DAZN
On Tuesday, WBC titleholder Fury reportedly started a verbal fracas with his former opponent, claiming that Ngannou had labelled him a "coward". The former UFC heavyweight champion denied the claim, before the argument descended into a squabble over who won the fight between them.
Ngannou sensationally knocked Fury down with a left hook in round three when the two met five months ago, before dropping a disputed 10-round split decision in Riyadh.
Ngannou dismisses Tyson Fury antics
"I was very calm and told him, 'The only moment that you have a chance is in a boxing ring!’" recalled Ngannou. "You can get up [from being knocked down] and that's alright, but I know you can't do s---. You can talk s--- and you can't do s---.
"Tyson can't intimidate me. Again, the only moment that he has a chance is when the boxing rules apply. If you take that [away], I beat him every day from Monday to Sunday, maybe twice on Sunday. I was like, 'Bro, all this doesn't matter. You can talk, but you know what truly happened.'"
So good was Ngannou's debut performance against Fury that the Cameroon-born colossus has been matched with his second elite-level foe in Joshua. Only two professional fights down and he'll have taken on two of the best heavyweights of this generation.
But despite the formidable challenge that lies ahead of him on Friday, the MMA star feels that there is still plenty of room for improvement.
"I do believe that with more fights, I'll get an understanding of the game," said Ngannou. "I will have the body mechanics. I will be comfortable with the pace of the fight, maybe [punch with] more power… a little more, not too much (laughs).
"I stepped into the [Fury] fight questioning myself about everything. Can I throw a jab? Have I ever thrown a jab in the boxing ring in front of a champion? Can I do that? Can I do two rounds? Can I do four? Can I do six? Regardless of the training that I had, I knew that it would be different in the fight."
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Ngannou targets Joshua's resilience
While Ngannou is new to professional boxing, he has prepared diligently for the Joshua test and has left no stone unturned. There was a solid game plan for Fury, which was constructed by chief second and former fighter Dewey Cooper, and there is a solid game plan for Joshua.
Ngannou also questioned his opponent's punch resistance when asked what shot AJ is most vulnerable to.
"I think every punch that lands will always cause him problems,” countered Ngannou. "When he fought Andy Ruiz, I think the left hook was a huge problem for him. I'm sure on the right [hand] side, he doesn't want to find out [if he's vulnerable].
"But I don't need to rush. It's not like if I miss [an early finish], I will lose the fight. I know that I can win the decision. I can still win if I don't really catch him. I truly believe [I can win on points]. I [beat] Fury on points, so how can I not believe that? Even though it was a struggle in my mind, I came to believe that it was possible."
While opinions vary on Fury's mindset and physical shape when he faced Ngannou six months ago, the bottom line is that it was a very close fight. However, if the Cameroon-born destroyer can outbox an in-form version of AJ, then he will shock the world once again. That is becoming a habit.