Media Will PFL still pursue the silly Ngannou vs Wilder crossover fight after the Parker loss?

[svmr_db]

Wilder finally showed up old overnight in his loss vs Joseph Parker & doesn't appear to have much left going forward. With the Joshua fight likely gone & less big opportunities going forward for him in boxing, will he still pursue the crossover fight vs Ngannou? Also do you think PFL will still be willing to pay a ton for it?

He's too old to pick up all the skills he'd need for a mixed rules bout vs Ngannou, also I don't think PFL would be able to hype & promote the fight the way they could before Wilder came out looking like he looked.

What are your thoughts? PFL clearly aren't the sharpest tools in the shed ie not merging the Bellator fighters like fans wanted & throwing the bag at washed Anthony Pettis etc. I could still see them thinking this is a good idea.

 

[surgeyou1]

Yeah. Still pretty easy to sell as the two heaviest hitters going at it.

 

[svmr_db]

Yeah. Still pretty easy to sell as the two heaviest hitters going at it.

Yeah if you can believe you're gonna get to see "Prime Wilder" you'd be right, in actuality everybody knows we'd just get timid Wilder afraid to pull the trigger, much tougher sell now.

 

[surgeyou1]

Yeah if you can believe you're gonna get to see "Prime Wilder" you'd be right, in actuality everybody knows we'd just get timid Wilder afraid to pull the trigger, much tougher sell now.

People still want to see Tony Ferguson fight.

 

[Bobby Boulders]

I think that fight still sells in PFL. I think, for Wilder, it's the money fight. Wilder could still leverage his name in MMA, mixed rules, K1 rules, boxing in MMA gloves in a cage, or even BKFC. The paydays might not be the numbers to which he's probably accustomed, but are still probably going to be bigger or equal to what he'd get paid to continue jobbing in boxing, bc his stock just dropped yesterday, and he may not have a lot of high profile matchups left. I don't think there is a bigger payday left for him than Frank, I'd say it is plausible he considers it.

 

[Hellowhosthat]

If anything it might make him more affordable for PFL. His boxing value must have gone down.

 

[Jackonfire]

Yeah if you can believe you're gonna get to see "Prime Wilder" you'd be right, in actuality everybody knows we'd just get timid Wilder afraid to pull the trigger, much tougher sell now.

Timid Wilder vs scared Ngannou from the Lewis fight would still sell. I don't think casuals care and they're the ones who spend money.

 

[Kryptt]

 

[TheBrownRanger]

Wilder will never fight in the PFL. Casual fans make me laugh.

 

[STAY GOLD]

His post fight interview was an indication he was done. I doubt this happens. I wouldn't be surprised if they had a fight in boxing, but not a mixed rules or MMA fight.

 

[Liverkick-king56]

Honestly Ngannou fighting Wilder now looks like a very winnable fight and a win sets him up as a legit contender.

Ngannou showed he's got skills to hang with the top guys but a win against one of the biggest recent names will make a fight with Joshua more valuable and interesting.


I'd prefer Parker vs Ngannou though since Wilder's fights seem more gimmicky and I'd rather see Ngannou pass a real test instead of bully a possibly broken man.

 

[Colin Mackie]

If Wilder fights again it will almost certainly be in a boxing ring, and likely in Saudi Arabia because he's probably got one more big payday in him, at least with the way those guys are throwing the money around. He still has value as a stepping stone to bolster some other fighter's rep. Honestly, I doubt he fights again. He's earned nearly $100 million and doesn't need the cash. He definitely isn't doing BKFC.

 

[skylolow]

I could see Francis vs Wilder in boxing but I doubt MMA unless Wilder sees no other option and looking for a quick payday.

Francis beats Wilder in a boxing match it probably set him up with a potential rematch with Gypsy King if he loses to Uysk. I'm guessing the winner of Fury vs Uysk will match up with the winner of Joshua vs Filip. So that kind of leaves Francis on the outside looking in on the top boxers of the world for this next year.

Chances are Francis will fight in the PFL next and it won't be against a name that really gets fans that excited.

 

[CC27]

This def makes it easier for them to fight cause if he won he fights Joshua and thats probably a two fight series so now he's freed up.

Whether or not he'd do mma or mixed rules even after that embarrassing performance i dont know, boxing francis he'd def do but then PFL's left holding their dicks. Its like ok why did we sign Francis if he's never gonna fight for us.

So who knows, maybe they just do the bader fight champ vs champ Bellator/PFL and then Francis can go box Wilder on his own.

 

[Royce Greasy]

Wilder finally showed up old overnight in his loss vs Joseph Parker & doesn't appear to have much left going forward. With the Joshua fight likely gone & less big opportunities going forward for him in boxing, will he still pursue the crossover fight vs Ngannou? Also do you think PFL will still be willing to pay a ton for it?

He's too old to pick up all the skills he'd need for a mixed rules bout vs Ngannou, also I don't think PFL would be able to hype & promote the fight the way they could before Wilder came out looking like he looked.

What are your thoughts? PFL clearly aren't the sharpest tools in the shed ie not merging the Bellator fighters like fans wanted & throwing the bag at washed Anthony Pettis etc. I could still see them thinking this is a good idea.

I've hated the whole PFL buying out Bellator but then I thought that if they actually combine both rosters and put on the best possible fights they could instead of milking the Bellator vs PFL talent they could very well have the best mma org on the planet. Having just read your post it makes me think they are just gonna blow this and crumble by making stupid publicity moves instead of running a real mma organization where the best face the best too bad really but not surprising.

 

[jeskola]

Yes, because Wilder is about to blame his boxing loss on MMA training.

 

[skylolow]

I've hated the whole PFL buying out Bellator but then I thought that if they actually combine both rosters and put on the best possible fights they could instead of milking the Bellator vs PFL talent they could very well have the best mma org on the planet. Having just read your post it makes me think they are just gonna blow this and crumble by making stupid publicity moves instead of running a real mma organization where the best face the best too bad really but not surprising.

The only reason they are running Bellator "separate" this coming year is because of media and some sponsorship deals that need to be fulfilled as part of the sale. Keep in mind any Bellator fighter can fight in the PFL also and vice versa if need be. 2025 the word Bellator probably won't exist anymore.

Does this all work out, who knows. Chances are, nope. But at least someone is willing to take big chances in this space and at least show fans they are trying to do everything they can to grow. Most these second level orgs just struggle to stay afloat and rarely take any big chances with there business and they fade away or abruptly close.

 

[Royce Greasy]

The only reason they are running Bellator "separate" this coming year is because of media and some sponsorship deals that need to be fulfilled as part of the sale. Keep in mind any Bellator fighter can fight in the PFL also and vice versa if need be. 2025 the word Bellator probably won't exist anymore.

Does this all work out, who knows. Chances are, nope. But at least someone is willing to take big chances in this space and at least show fans they are trying to do everything they can to grow. Most these second level orgs just struggle to stay afloat and rarely take any big chances with there business and they fade away or abruptly close.

What I meant is that after Bellator is absorbed completely into PFL are they just gonna dump a lot of the Bellator talent or are they gonna to use that massive roster that they will now have, something tells me they won't.

 

[skylolow]

According to Davis they plan on keeping a large percentage of Bellator fighters which is right around 300.

But reality probably is the top 50 guys in Bellator no doubt they'll keep and the next 100 or so most will find a place. After that I highly doubt it and who really cares that point.

Bigger question is will there be enough shows to keep fighters active.

 

[joeson]

If Ngannou doesn’t end up boxing AJ, this fight seems very likely. Even if Ngannou vs AJ does happen the Wilder fight might still happen later in the year. Francis owes the PFL a fight and even though Wilder can be flighty, he has fewer options now and as someone mentioned, his price tag has probably come down.

I'd say the odds of this fight happening are probably higher now than before the Parker fight.