Deontay Wilder’s manager opens door to massive fight with Francis Ngannou and reveals talks after heavyweight leaves UFC
DEONTAY WILDER’S manager has opened the door to a massive fight with ex-UFC champion Francis Ngannou.
Ngannou has walked out on the UFC – being stripped of the title – after failing to agree a new contract.
And already the Cameroonian has talked up a lucrative switch to the boxing ring.
Wilder’s manager Shelly Finkel once held tentative talks with UFC president Dana White for a fight between the American and Ngannou.
And he is willing to revisit the idea now the heavyweight is a free agent following his UFC exit.
Finkel told SunSport: “I’d be open to it, I’d be foolish to say. ‘I’m not interested, don’t talk to me.’
“As a matter of fact, Dana White and I had some conversations but it just never went anywhere. Dana actually wanted it.
“Then Deontay met Ngannou when he was training for Robert Helenius, while he was out in Vegas and they got along fine.”
Wilder, 37, was welcomed to the UFC’s training facility last year before he brutally knocked out Helenius, 38, in round one of his October return.
And he bumped into Ngannou, fuelling speculation of a blockbuster bout between the two famed punchers.
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And Wilder recently welcomed the fight when asked about Ngannou’s decision to leave the UFC.
He told ESNews: “I would love to. Another African brother. I respect his decision on what he’s done.”
Wilder and his team have pursued a fight with Anthony Joshua, 33, following years of failed talks in the past.
But Joshua is on a rebuilding job following consecutive points losses to unbeaten Oleksandr Usyk, 36.
AJ looks set to return on April 1 at the O2 Arena against Jermaine Franklin, 29, who lost a disputed decision to Dillian Whyte, 34, in November.
So Wilder has turned his attention to Andy Ruiz Jr, 33, after the WBC ordered them into a final eliminator for the title.
Finkel said: “Deontay is in good spirits, right now we’re looking at a couple of options and most likely we’ll be fighting Ruiz, I hope in the second quarter of the year.
“In the next couple of weeks I’ll know if that can be made. Ruiz is not a second-class opponent, so he’s asking for a good payday also, which makes it all the more difficult.”