I’ve had 100 fights but training Francis Ngannou is just as painful… he punches as hard as Mike Tyson

TRAINER Dewey Cooper had over 100 professional fights – but taking shots from Francis Ngannou is a far more painful experience.

Cooper fought in boxing, kickboxing and MMA before moving into coaching after retiring.

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Trainer Dewey Cooper with Francis Ngannou[/caption]

And he has been working with Ngannou since 2017, bravely holding the pads and body belt for the 6ft 4in powerhouse.

Cooper admits not even a 15-year fighting career brings as much agony as withstanding Ngannou’s power.

He told SunSport: “In the fights when I was fighting I had really good defence. I would defend a lot of techniques, getting hit clean was a rarity.

“Getting hit by Francis, I’m giving the body away getting hit by him. It’s not happy, it’s not nice for sure.

“It hurts but like I said, I signed up for the job and I’m happy to be here. We’re going to keep working hard.”

Ngannou’s power was once tested at the UFC’s Performance Institute in Las Vegas.

And the ferocity had the same impact as a 12lb sledgehammer being swung at full force or comparable to being hit by a Ford Escort at full speed.

Cooper chuckled: “I believe it! I can tell you right now, I’ve been hit by a lot of guys, recently I’ve been doing pads for Mike Tyson. No one’s hitting harder than Francis, man.

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“When he places those punches correctly and bends his knees and turns his hips, sometimes I get hit so hard I’m like, ‘How am I taking this? What am I doing to myself?’

“It’s funny to me because I’m like, ‘What am I doing here?’ It’s a lot of pain involved.”

Ngannou, 38, last year put his MMA career on hold to pursue a lifelong ambition of boxing.

He sensationally dropped Tyson Fury, 36, in his boxing debut before being knocked out by Anthony Joshua, 35, in March.

Cooper led the corner on those occasions but now he welcomes Ngannou back to MMA to fight Renan Ferreira, 34, on Saturday in Saudi Arabia.

The coach said: “We’re refreshed to see him back in MMA.

“Boxing, kickboxing, grappling, wrestling, all the elements. It’s been a good camp and he’s ready to go.”