Eddie Hearn is trying to plot Anthony Joshua’s next move
Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn has revealed he has told AJ to wait for the result of the Tyson Fury vs Usyk rematch before making any big decisions on his next fight, after being demolished by Daniel Dubois in five rounds on September 21.
Hearn told Sky Sports: “My advice is don’t do anything until December 21, Usyk vs Fury.
“If Tyson Fury loses that fight, you set up a big fight with Anthony Joshua. If Tyson Fury wins that fight, you make a voluntary defence against Anthony Joshua for the unified heavyweight championship.
“In AJ’s mind, I think all he’ll want to do is get back in with Daniel Dubois because they’ll think they can beat him.
“In my mind, I think we have to wait to see what happens with Tyson Fury.
“If AJ is looking at a couple of big fights in 2025, and there is an opportunity to still fight Tyson Fury – because it’s still the biggest fight in the division by a mile – I think that’s something we should look at as well.
“Even in defeat, he’s still the biggest star in Britain with Tyson Fury, and possibly around the world.
“He doesn’t want to lose, but as we close the chapters to his career, he’ll be looking for the biggest fights.”
Joshua is contracted for one more fight with Riyadh Season and Dubois could be a potential opponent for that, but the IBF World heavyweight champion is under no obligation to have an immediate rematch with Joshua.
“At the moment, it’s about looking at the options for Anthony,” added Hearn. “It’s all very fresh at the moment, just over 24 hours after the fight, plenty of options to consider.”
“We have the opportunity to fight a number of opponents with Riyadh Season and Daniel Dubois could be one of them.
“If that was something we wanted to push with Riyadh Season and His Excellency [Turki Alalshikh] we could, but at the same time also being open to looking at other fights as well, particularly focusing on December 21 as well.”
What went wrong in Dubois fight?
“I think he made a lot of mistakes,” admitted Hearn. “Training camp went great and there are definitely no complaints from our side.
“He prepared really well, sparred excellently and, on the night, didn’t do as he was told in terms of game plan. He let Dubois take the centre of the ring and be governor in there, and paid the price.
“It was horrendous, to get chinned like that at the end of the first round is difficult to recover from. He did amazingly well to recover and go into that fourth and fifth round.
“He’s kicking himself for not performing how he should have on a big night.
“I’m proud of him, he tried to win the fight. You get a lot of people who get hurt, come to survive and you get others who want to let their hands go, trade and try and win.
“He got up until he couldn’t get up anymore, he got up many times that night but that was a big right hand from Daniel Dubois and one too many.”
Hearn then revealed how AJ felt in the aftermath of such a devastating defeat in front of 98,000 spectators at Wembley Stadium, “I think a lot of them don’t really know him and don’t know how he’s feeling, and the desire he’s got. All I can tell you is he’s got a lot of good people around him who care deeply about him.
“One thing he’s been shocked by, that I’ve not been shocked by, is the support he’s received and it’s really lifted him.
“I don’t think he’ll want anybody to feel sorry for him or be disheartened, but he is gutted and devastated, and the support he’s had has been incredible.
“He’s been looking like the best of his whole career going into this fight. He underperformed, we have to establish why, but in his heart he still feels fresh and like he’s got a lot to give to the sport, but there’s no rush.
“We’re going to go away, take our time and look at the options. There will be no decisions before December 21, so right now it’s just relax, take your time.
“The desire is 100 per cent still there to fight. Physically, if he can still be the fighter he has been and that we believe he is, then you will see him continue and it’s something we’ll to him about.
“One hundred per cent you’ll see him back in the ring in 2025,” Hearn concluded.
Frank Warren gets on board
Fury’s promoter Frank Warren is still open to a blockbuster all-British showdown in the future.
“Let’s see what happens in that fight [Fury vs Usyk],” Warren told Sky Sports. “I believe Tyson will come through it and then, who knows, it may happen.
“AJ may get a fight back, may get himself back into contention. I’m sure people would buy into it – there’s no doubt about it – but whether it’s a winner against a loser, it depends on the outcome of the fight with Usyk, which is a tough fight.”