One of MMA’s all-time greats has revealed that he’d be open to returning to fighting for a boxing match with Francis Ngannou.

A former UFC heavyweight champion, Ngannou famously exited the promotion by his own choice after he defeated Ciryl Gane in a heavyweight title unification bout at UFC 270 in 2022.

After signing with the PFL, “The Predator” was allowed to take a pair of high-profile boxing matches with Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury, nearly upsetting the latter fighter on the scorecards in what was Ngannou’s boxing debut.

Fedor Emelianenko Proposes Francis Ngannou Boxing Match

It’s unclear what’s next for Ngannou, as he ended up only competing once with the PFL in 2024 but returned to MMA once again in May when he knocked out Philipe Lins during the first MVP MMA event on Netflix.

In an entirely unexpected proposal, heavyweight MMA legend Fedor Emelianeko recently suggested that he’d be open to meeting Ngannou in the boxing ring.

“If we’re talking about a real dream, I’d be interested in fighting Francis Ngannou under boxing rules,” Emelianenko told Ushatayka (h/t Red Corner MMA). “I couldn’t manage MMA now, I have too many injuries. But, I’d have a go at him in boxing. That’s just me thinking out loud.”

Still considered by some to be the greatest heavyweight in MMA history, Emelianeko competed in 47 professional MMA bouts across his incredible career but never stepped into the boxing ring.

"The Last Emperor" Hasn't Fought Since 2023 Bellator Title Shot

Other than for financial purposes or to try and appeal to longtime MMA fans, a boxing match with Ngannou seems like it might be an ill-advised move for the now-50-year-old Emelianeko.

After first establishing himself as an all-time MMA great through his legendry run with PRIDE FC, Emelianeko extended his lengthy winning run with several fights outside of Japan before claiming the Strikeforce heavyweight belt in 2009.

Future UFC Heavyweight Champion Fabricio Werdum shattered the Russian’s win streak with a first-round submission to kick off what turned into an unprecedented three-fight skid for Emelianeko, who rebounded with five-straight wins in Russia and Japan before joining Bellator in 2017.

A seven-fight run with Bellator saw “The Last Emperor” go 4-3 and never see the judges’ scorecards, and in his last outing at Bellator 290 in 2023 he was stopped by Ryan Bader in the first round of a rematch for Bader’s heavyweight belt.  

Where Will Francis Ngannou Fight Next?

A boxing match between Emelianenko and Ngannou may have held some intrigue while Emelianenko was still fighting in Bellator and Ngannou was in the UFC, but at this stage combat sports fans are more interested in what “The Predator” intends to do next.

Ngannou’s second boxing match after nearly upsetting Fury saw him suffer a second-round knockout at the hands of Joshua, but his one-off title bout in the PFL and win over Lins at MVP MMA 1 extended his winning run in MMA to eight fights dating back to 2018.