Eddie Hearn backs crossover bout between boxing's Whyte and UFC's Ngannou this year

Promoter Eddie Hearn has said he is planning to reach out to UFC boss Dana White about a potential cross-discipline clash between boxer Dillian Whyte and UFC star Francis Ngannou later this year.

Responding to questions on an Instagram live chat, Hearn said Ngannou was interested in taking on Whyte in a ring.

"The only thing is, do we go in the cage or do we go in the ring?," he said

"Apparently Ngannou wants it in the ring though.

"I thought maybe me and Dana could put this night together where you've got a ring which also transforms into a cage between match ups. So you've got crossover fights but you've got an MMA fighter against a boxer in a ring. Then you've got a boxer fighting an MMA fighter in a cage."

Hearn later told Sky Sports that he has been forced to take the prospect of a Whyte and Ngannou fight seriously in the last week due to increased interest from fans.

"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," he added.

"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 has already picked out Ngannou, calling him a "coward" and "boring."

"Ngannou is dumber than he sounds if he thinks he's going to do anything in boxing," Whyte told Sky Sports.

"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."