Francis Ngannou’s coach has issued a positive update regarding the return of the UFC heavyweight champion.

Back in January, Francis Ngannou aggravated a knee injury that required surgery - leaving him on the shelf ever since. The issue first arose in training and then, after opting to go ahead with his fight against Ciryl Gane, ‘The Predator’ was left hobbling out of the Octagon after successfully retaining his championship belt.

Everyone knew that it’d be a while before we saw him in there again but as his road to recovery continues, the excitement is growing regarding what he may be able to achieve once he competes again.

Francis has been posting frequent videos and pictures on social media and his YouTube channel, highlighting just how much progress he’s made along the way in the process.

Read more: UFC 285: Bas Rutten breaks down Jon Jones vs Francis Ngannou

The big test, however, will be what happens when he actually steps into the cage - something that has been a long time coming.

One of his coaches, Dewey Cooper, recently gave an insight into what it’s been like to train with the king of the heavyweights.

Video: Dewey Cooper previews Francis Ngannou’s comeback

“This version of Francis will be better than the last version of Francis before he injured the knee. It’s going to be something that’s galactic,” Cooper said. “We’re expecting Francis to be better, stronger, more athletic, more everything. He expects the same thing, so it’s definitely going to happen.”

“Whenever something is smart and official, we’ll make sure that we do the right things to have him at his very best,” said Cooper. “2023, we’ve got some big, big things ahead.”

When will he return?

Based on recent reports, as well as the trajectory of his recovery, it seems like UFC 285 is the targeted landing spot for Francis Ngannou to next defend his UFC heavyweight title.

The primary contender, of course, is none other than light heavyweight GOAT Jon Jones.

Read more: UFC 285: Jon Jones vs Francis Ngannou main event in the works

‘Bones’ has been teasing a move up in weight for the better part of a decade now. He knows his own body and what he needs to do in order to compete in the land of the giants, and after almost three years away, he’s finally about to try and make a name for himself by becoming a two-division champ.

Ngannou may not know much about what Jon is going to look like at this weight class, but one thing is for sure - he’ll give everything he’s got to keep hold of the strap.