NAPOLEON Taumoepeau says he is not taking Alipate Nagata lightly in their heavyweight contest at the upcoming Naidiri Boxing promotion next month.
The Tongan boxer is currently sparring with New Zealand Professional Boxing Association (NZPBA) heavyweight champion.
Gearing up to his fight with Nagata, Taumoepeau said fighting the Navosa slugger (Nagata) would not be easy.
He said he had to turn overseas for more professional training.
"The sparring was very tough, we sparred 100 per cent if it were a real fight. Sonny was very sharp and fast and his fitness level was unbelievable," Taumoepeau said.
"Just getting sparring rounds with not only a great boxer, but a world class athlete (Williams) who may well be the IBF International Heavyweight champion just helped prepare me for that next level of competition.
"He (Williams) lets me know what I need to work on during camp," he said.
Taumoepeau said Williams gave him a lot of boxing tips which would be an asset against Nagata.
"I learned a lot about distance fighting, and measuring your opponents reach because he (Williams) is trained very well in that area. I also learned how to time him because he was a bit quicker than me.
"I respect Alipate that is why I came to NZ for training because I did have a three and half-year layoff and felt a bit rusty in my last fight."
Taumoepeau thanked his family, his coach Lollo Heimuli and sponsors Pizza King and Wishbone for backing him up.