Naturally, when a former WWE superstar transitions to mixed martial arts, that person will be compared to Brock Lesnar.

Jack Swagger, real name Jake Hager, is no exception. Swagger is a former World Heavyweight Champion, but his wrestling abilities certainly aren’t limited to pomp and circumstance. Swagger has a legit amateur background at the University of Oklahoma. Swagger set the single-season school record for most pins in the 285-pound division.

Swagger took part in a Bellator 214 media call. While he praised Lesnar, he also discussed the comparisons made between the two:

“We both have big teeth and no necks. What Brock did was incredible. He raised the bar to new heights, to something a lot of people didn’t think would ever happen. To have entertainers cross over into this highly physical industry. It’s the toughest sport in the world, bar none. Before I started training for MMA, I was like ‘I’ve wrestled all of my life, I know how to train hard.’ No. MMA training is way hard than wrestling and it has proven that over the last year and a half. But if I could make some comparison to me and Brock, I’d say very similar wrestling, though he might have the edge on that, but I think my hands are better.”

Swagger will make his MMA debut against J.W. Kiser on Jan. 26 inside The Forum in Inglewood, California.