Eddie Hearn has admitted he wants to open talks with UFC president Dana White over a potential cross promotion event, including a Dillian Whyte vs Francis Ngannou fight.
Talk of MMA fighters in boxing fights and boxers in MMA fights have been all the rage since Conor McGregor's fight against Floyd Mayweather in 2017, and now Whyte vs Ngannou is the next fight to be talked about.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Hearn, who represents Whyte, said he thinks the fight with UFC heavyweight Ngannou could take place sometime this year.
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"The aim for Dillian Whyte is to become a world boxing champion, but I wouldn't be surprised at all to see Dillian Whyte against Ngannou towards the end of this year. Obviously we know Povetkin is next, but whether it's October, November, December.
"I'm going to be reaching out to Dana White and saying: 'Tell me how this works? Can we actually do this? Are we doing it in a ring? Are we doing it in a cage? Are we doing one round of each?'
"It's really got a lot of momentum and a lot of promise. I think there's a really good chance it could happen."
Whyte is currently the number one contender for Tyson Fury's WBC heavyweight title and was initially told his fight for the title would take place early next year.
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With Fury set for a third fight against Deontay Wilder, and so much up in the air over the current situation in boxing, there's no certainty when Whyte will get his opportunity.
The 32-year-old is due to face Alexander Povetkin and that could take place later this summer in the garden of Hearn's Matchroom Boxing garden.
Ngannou is in his own limbo. The French-Cameroonian beat Jairzinho Rozenstruik at UFC 249, could be in line for a future shot at the UFC heavyweight title and has entered into a feud with Jon Jones over social media but isn't sure what's next for him.
The Jamaican born boxer had some strong words of warning for his potential future opponent about stepping in the ring, "Ngannou is dumber than he sounds if he thinks he's going to do anything in boxing," Whyte told Sky Sports.
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"If he turned up to fight me like the coward that he was against Derrick Lewis I'd hurt him and knock him clean out. That was officially the most boring fight in UFC history. The only thing more boring is his personality. If I called him a potato it would be a compliment.
"He reminds me of that other deluded coward Deontay Wilder. Ngannou has to be the most boring man on the planet. A speck of dust has more personality. ... If he wants it and wants to earn some real money, let's get it on and stop talking about it. Don't talk about it, let's just do it."
Will Whyte and Ngannou fight?
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