Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn took some time to talk to Marcos Villegas of Fight Hub TV about his next plans for Anthony Joshua, which have been rumored to include a potential fight against Deontay Wilder. Hearn says if they do end up signing a Wilder fight, Joshua will most likely take another tune-up rather than head straight into that fight. Check out some of what he had to say below.
Hearn on what kind of fight Joshua is looking to have next
“If we sign for the Wilder fight, I don’t expect AJ to fight a top three of four guy. I think he’ll take a top 10, 15 guy again and prepare himself for the Deontay Wilder fight.”
On Joshua potentially getting grief for taking another tune-up kind of fight
“Who gives a fuck?! No, I’m serious. Who gives a fuck about grief? When you’ve achieved what he has achieved, who gives a fuck? You’re gonna get grief, what, from some bloke on Twitter?
“When you’ve been a two-time world heavyweight champion, when you’ve won Olympic gold, when you’ve made hundreds of millions, when you’ve changed your life, when you’ve changed people’s lives around you, when you’ve changed your family’s life, are you really at the point of your career when you want to worry about being criticized for taking a fight that you feel is the correct development for a fight a couple of months later, which is one of the biggest fights in the sport and one of the biggest in heavyweight history? Fuck everybody!
“It’s like when he boxed Jermaine Franklin, everybody’s like ‘ah, he should’ve gone in there and done this’ — no, no. He should’ve gone in there and made sure he won, won as many rounds as possible. Should’ve been a little bit more aggressive but don’t worry about it, all he cares about is winning.
“If he went in against Deontay Wilder and boxed his head off for 12 rounds and people thought it was boring, who cares? That’s where he’s at in his career right now. He wants to win the big fights, wants to become heavyweight world champion. He’ll do it in the way he feels is most effective.
“Now he’s not just gonna go in there against Wilder and just try to outbox him, he’s going to try to knock him out, but with brain. But you can’t worry about criticism.”