Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou has seemingly accepted Deontay Wilder’s challenge.
‘The Predator’ exited the UFC last month after failing to reach an agreement for a new contract. As a result, he was stripped of his heavyweight gold, and Ngannou quickly began targeting a new home. For their part, the UFC quickly booked Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane for the vacant title in March.
That new home will likely come in the form of the boxing ring. Ngannou has teased that he would one-day compete in the sport, and now as a free agent, he will look to make it a reality. Over the last month, Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing, Misfits Boxing, and Tyson Fury have all shown interest in the former champion.
However, Deontay Wilder is also interested in facing the former UFC champion. During a recent apperance on ‘Trill Boxing Talk’, ‘The Bronze Bomber’ stated:
“I’m still interested in that fight; I would love to do that one in Africa. I know he’s [Ngannou] doing his own thing, I’m proud of him for following his heart, doing what he feels. I’m very interested in it, let’s do it man. Two big, black superheroes. I even thought about this idea: Let’s make it a two-fight deal.”
“Everybody always comes to boxing, let’s do this: You come to my [sport], I’ll come to yours. You come to my house, I’ll come to yours. I’m a true warrior. I’m serious about that, too. I wanna do something different since everybody doing this crossover between combat sports.”
A week after Deontay Wilder’s comments, Francis Ngannou has now responded. In a series of tweets, the former UFC champion verbally accepted the deal, and stated that he hopes to see the boxer soon. However, Ngannou also seemed to hint that he’s not confident Wilder will fight him in MMA.
Welcome to the free world @BronzeBomber. I hope you are a man of your word. See you soon 💨💨💨 #NgannouWilder https://t.co/eYmDbRK2Ug
— Francis Ngannou (@francis_ngannou) February 17, 2023
“Welcome to the free world @BronzeBomber. I hope you are a man of your word. See you soon”
I said only boxing so he can keep his limbs 🤣 like I said we will see if he’s a man of his word https://t.co/8CJT1FUXJ0
— Francis Ngannou (@francis_ngannou) February 17, 2023
“I said only boxing so he can keep his limbs… like I said we will see if he’s a man of his word”
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