Eddie Hearn Eyes Francis Ngannou vs. Anthony Joshua as Deontay Wilder Fight Potentially Being Off

For the longest time, boxing fans have awaited to watch the fight between  Anthony Joshua vs. Deontay Wilder. Last month, there were reports suggesting that fans might witness AJ fighting Wilder next. But after Wilder’s third career loss, it turns out ‘the Bronze Bomber’s’ fight is off for now. Instead, promoter, Eddie Hearn, is exploring other options for Anthony Joshua, and one of the exciting names among them is Francis Ngannou.

Last month Joshua and Wilder was reportedly set to fight on December 23, but despite being on the same card, they didn’t go against each other. Subsequently, reports suggested that they would fight in March 2024. Meanwhile, Hearn, talking to IFL TV, says that he no longer sees this fight happening. He labeled Wilder a “Busted Flush” and shared the possible opponents he is now seeking for AJ. He stated;

“Right now we have three fights that we’re in discussions for. They all are big and that doesn’t involve Deontay Wilder for March. Our aim as we’ve expressed this is to fight the winner of Fury vs Usyk. That’s all we want to do, you know, obviously there’s the Filip Hrgovic fight out there for the world heavyweight title there’s the Francis Ngannou fight out there which would be absolutely colossal.”

Indeed, Ngannou, made a statement against Tyson Fury, and he is now a serious threat in the heavyweight division. Not only does he come with power and prowess, but he also has a huge fan base thanks to his time in the UFC. Therefore, as per Hearn, the fight between Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou is believed to be lucrative from both a business and a fighting standard.

Apart from the Ngannou fight, Hearn also has some other names, from Filip Hrgovic to Zhilei Zhang. However, it is interesting that just because of one fight, the longest-awaited bout is off for now. However, Hearn didn’t deny that it won’t happen in the future, but for now, he thinks Wilder will not be a good fight.

Eddie Hearn Believes Anthony Joshua vs Deontay Wilder is a Missed Match

In the same interview, Hearn was asked about his thoughts on Wilder. He stated that apart from his power, he doesn’t see Wilder as a boxer in the league of Joshua. So he claimed that it would be a mismatched fight. He stated,

“I don’t rule it out. It just that the people who wanted to put the fight on, no longer see that as the fight that is the fight that it was. Obviously negotiations have taken place up till that point to agree the deal. But the numbers don’t work now because Wilder is a busted flush at the moment. I know Deontay always has the punch and all but it’s a mis match against AJ in my opinion.”

It appears that Hearn does not consider Wilder as one of the potential opponents for AJ’s next fight. It will be interesting to see who he chooses to fight instead.