RIYADH: Tyson Fury compared himself to Novak Djokovic after going face-to-face with Francis Ngannou at their weigh-in on Friday.
The towering Brit dismissed the punching threat posed by Ngannou, a former UFC star who will make his professional boxing debut Saturday at age 37.
鈥淚t鈥檚 like a table tennis champion facing Djokovic in the Wimbledon final 鈥� totally different,鈥� the WBC heavyweight champion said.
The 35-year-old Fury weighed-in at 277.7 pounds while his Cameroonian opponent was 272.1 pounds after both men stepped on the scale in street clothes.
Moments later, Fury pushed his forehead into Ngannou, who responded with a chest-bump to give himself some space.
鈥淚 have played this game so long. This can鈥檛 get to me. It鈥檚 part of the game,鈥� Ngannou said of Fury鈥檚 antics.
Both fighters predicted a quick evening on Sunday.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to take a couple of minutes at the beginning, but I think this fight will end very quick,鈥� Ngannou said.
Fury, the self-described 鈥淕ypsy King,鈥� will earn a reported $50 million paycheck for the fight in the 萝莉视频n capital.
It鈥檚 a 10-round fight and will count as an official bout, according to the WBC. Fury鈥檚 belt will not be at stake, though, on the off-chance he is beaten.
鈥淚鈥檓 going to make it nice and short for him,鈥� Fury said.
Fury said he鈥檒l take a week off afterward before discussing a fight with Oleksandr Usyk to unify all of the major heavyweight boxing titles.