He may not be what he once was, but Deontay Wilder's scalp is still an important one to grab.

Dave Allen used to cringe when Wilder was in the ring. No one knew when it would happen, only that it would. For several rounds, heavyweights would do just fine with him. They would befuddle him with foot movement, throw him off with feints and keep him at bay with a strong jab. However, all it took was one second. Next thing you know, they were staring up at the ceiling lights while Wilder was screaming bomb squad in a microphone.

Nowadays however, that ticking time bomb of a right hand never goes off. In four of his last five fights, Wilder has been dominated and stopped in three of those painful defeats.

Although things haven't gone his way, the former long-reigning WBC champion (43-4-1, 42 KOs) refuses to acknowledge that he's past his best and instead has ambitious future plans in mind. Allen though, knows exactly why Wilder notched victory since October 2022.

"I think Deontay Wilder, at this point, is on the slide," Allen told talkSPORT during a recent interview.

As Wilder heads down the ladder and with Allen unexpectedly climbing it, the two may cross paths during their journeys.

Fan favourite Allen is fresh after one of his career-best wins, a fifth-round stoppage over highly-regarded heavyweight prospect Johnny Fisher in their much-anticipated rematch.

Wilder and Fisher aren't exactly in the same ballpark but Allen can peel something away from beating him.

No, Allen isn't a former champion or highly-ranked contender. The 33-year-old (24-7-2, 19 KOs) is heavy-handed but not viewed as someone possessing the sort of one-punch power that can take down a raging bull like Wilder. Yet, even with a few things not in his favour, he's bullish about producing the right display to get the job done if granted the opportunity.

Ultimately, if Wilder doesn't win his comeback fight against Tyrell Anthony Herndon on June 27, Allen can forget about a showdown with him.

Secretly, or maybe even openly, Allen will be rooting for him. If Wilder can look even remotely like himself and get back in the win column, Allen will attempt to position himself for that fight in the near future.

"I think so, yeah," continued a confident Allen when asked if he can knock Wilder off. "I think stylistically, it's a good match for me. I can beat him."