31 October 2023 , 10:18
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Francis Ngannou has opened the door for boxing and MMA fights against Deontay Wilder following his controversial loss to Tyson Fury.
Ngannou lost his boxing debut to heavyweight champion this past weekend but exceeded expectations after dropping the Brit and only losing by one point in a heavily scrutinised split decision. The former UFC champion's name has been on the tip of everyone's tongue since the fight and Fury's old foe Wilder is now very interested in facing Ngannou.
A mixed-rules fight between the two knockout artists has been proposed by PFL founder Donn Davis, as Ngannou is set to make his debut for the MMA promotion in the first quarter of next year. Wilder, who hasn't fought in over a year, has apparently been training MMA in secret for the past few months in the hopes of facing Ngannou.
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“I think that’s a good idea,” Ngannou said of fighting Wilder on The MMA Hour. “In fact, we have spoken about that. In fact, that has been in the discussion. So, that’s something that can potentially happen. Deontay Wilder for a couple of months, for a little while now, has been training MMA because there’s an option here. Nothing is set, but some things have been coming to my ear, to my attention, so that’s something that makes sense.
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"He’s really serious about MMA. I know a lot of people talk, ‘Oh, I’m going to do this in boxing and do that in MMA but I think Deontay Wilder is very interested in MMA, Again, it’s going to be hard. It’s going to be a different beast for him. Unlike this time, that I was the one experiencing climbing the mountain, he’s going to be the one climbing the mountain.”
Wilder's coach Malik Scott revealed just days after Ngannou's recent fight that talks have already started between the two camps over a potential fight. "We’re already in communications about it," he told Fight Hype. "He’s an option now, and we’re going to see where things go. Yeah, absolutely. Me personally, I believe he’s willing to do good business. I talked to Deontay about it. I believe he’s right there to be hit by Deontay.
"He’s mature and poised, and for a guy with no professional fights as a boxer, he’s still big and strong. In my opinion, he’s very dangerous. He’s a high-risk fight for anybody. I believe him being that big, it puts him in line to be hit by Deontay with a bomb. We’ll write it up to get him out of there if the opportunity comes."