In the last few years, countless boxers have discussed the scenario of jumping over to mixed martial arts, and countless MMA stars have discussed the scenario of crossing over to boxing.
Those discussions exploded when UFC superstar Conor McGregor crossed over to boxing to face Floyd Mayweather in August of 2017.
Their showdown became the second most successful event in the history of combat sports, with over 4 million pay-per-view purchases. Mayweather, inactive for two years, stopped McGregor in the tenth round.
But one boxer believes that a transition to MMA would be too dangerous for the athletes of that respective sport.
“I’ve spoke out about that before. For me I’ll fight you in my sport and I’ll come to your sport and do it too,” Wilder told ThaBoxingVoice. "I feel MMA, they allow you to get on top of your opponent and bash his face in with velocity and speed coming downwards.
“Four-ounce gloves, I already talk about getting people out of the ring, but that would definitely be the sport where I show it, man. It’s just different rules, different things, I’m built with a set of skills, I have a lot of intellect and a lot of knowledge of combat, period. So I see all the MMA guys always come to boxing because in boxing you have to stand on your feet, you have to be a motherf---ing man for 36 minutes. But I wouldn’t mind going into his world as well too. One for one. May the best man win.
“You know, all this is fantasy talk. I don’t think anything will ever come to fruition. I’m just too dangerous of a man in any type of combat sports. I really would end a life because I have the power to, and that’s just the damn truth.”
Wilder returns to the ring on February 22, when he defends his belt against Tyson Fury in a rematch at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.