Following Francis Ngannou’s moral victory against Tyson Fury, promoter Eddie Hearn said he would like the former UFC Champion to face Anthony Joshua.
Ngannou shocked the world by dropping Fury in the third round of their contest, ultimately losing a split decision but proving most fans and pundits wrong with his impressive effort.
Speaking to Boxing Social, Hearn said that he’s already putting things in place should ‘AJ’ want the fight.
“Now Francis Ngannou has beaten Tyson Fury, I’m up for it. I’ve not spoken to AJ – he may say ‘I want to fight Wilder, I want to do this’ but … I might have [spoken to Saudi already.] I’ve spoke to a few people.”
“I think Fury-Usyk is a damp squib, but if it’s contracted – and undisputed fights are always great – again, I have to speak to the boss, but I like AJ-Ngannou. For me, light work.”
“You have to respect it. He just beat Tyson Fury … He should’ve been given the decision.”
There seems to be a race to get Ngannou’s signature, and if Hearn has already started initial talks, he is neck-and-neck with the team of Joshua’s heavyweight rival.
Speaking to FightHype, Deontay Wilder’s trainer Malik Scott said lines of communication have opened up for his man to face Ngannou next.
“We already in communications about it. He’s an option now. We’re gonna see where things go. Yeah absolutely [there have been talks in last 24 hours.] He’s definitely one of the options that we’re seeking now. Me personally I believe he’s willing to do good business. I gotta talk to Deontay about it.
I believe he’s right there to be hit by Deontay, as mature as he come across. He’s still a big guy, strong, very dangerous, high risk. But I believe him being that big in his novice it puts him right in line to get his with the bomb.”
The two fighters had previously discussed a two-bout deal, one taking place in Africa.
Joshua and Wilder have been in prolonged talks for the best part of this year, but recently had a deal taken off the table. That pushed their plans back to at least Spring 2024.
If the American manages to secure the Ngannou fight, it would leave ‘AJ’ without option one and two, and Fury facing Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed title early next year, as per their contract, means the Brit would be forced to look down the rankings.
It all lies with Ngannou, who has a deal with MMA organisation the Professional Fighters League and intends to compete once in that discipline before returning to boxing.