‘Really serious’ discussions taking place about Deontay Wilder – but not in boxing

Francis Ngannou and Deontay Wilder have generated significant interest in a potential fight, but it may not unfold as expected.

Ngannou revealed that there have been discussions about a fight against Wilder, but inside the MMA cage. Despite being a renowned boxing figure, Wilder has reportedly shown a desire to compete in MMA, according to Ngannou.

During an interview with Ariel Helwani, Ngannou stated, “That’s something that can potentially happen. Deontay Wilder for a couple of months, or a little while, has been training MMA because there’s an option here. Nothing is set, but some things have been coming to my attention, so that’s something that makes sense. He’s really serious about MMA. A lot of people talk – ‘I’m going to do this in boxing and do that in MMA’ – but Deontay Wilder is very interested in MMA, and even just to step in the (cage) for MMA and MMA only. It’s going to be hard. It’s going to be a different beast for him.”

Ngannou recently left the UFC while still holding the heavyweight title and joined the PFL, which allows him to explore other opportunities. However, Ngannou suffered a split decision loss in his highly competitive boxing debut against WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury in Saudi Arabia. His debut in PFL MMA is expected in 2024.

Wilder, on the other hand, has not competed in MMA. His most recent boxing match resulted in a knockout victory against Robert Helenius in October 2022. He faced consecutive losses to Fury in championship fights before that.

For more information on the potential matchup, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Fury vs. Ngannou.

This story originally appeared on MMA Junkie.