Eddie Hearn claims he nor Frank Warren could put on a fight between Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois with all the undercard trimmings.
The Matchroom boss made the statement amid controversy over the decision to play the Saudi Arabian National Anthem before ‘God Save The King’ on Saturday night. Since then, Hearn has been fighting off questions about sport washing and journalists being barred from covering events if critical of Turki Alalshikh’s involvement.
Hearn believes that without Alalshikh, British boxing would struggle to put on Joshua vs. Dubois despite the country having put on many similar events in the past.
“He’s [Turki Alalshikh] given British boxing – all the fighters and fans – the best night. He’s paid for it all. I couldn’t have put that event up. Frank Warren couldn’t have put that event up,” Hearn said at the Beterbiev vs Bivol press conference and to IFL TV.
Addressing the Saudi Anthem, Hearn stated it was no big deal and said he’d play it repeatedly if Alalshikh kept dipping his hand into his pocket.
“It’s a sign of respect for the work that’s been put into creating this event. Is it a big deal for 20 seconds [of an anthem]? He could have done that show in Riyadh, and everyone could go, ‘Oh, another big fight in Riyadh.’
“But now he’s actually gone out and spent the money to do it in the UK. He’s given everybody just the best night and all these fighters all these incredible opportunities. But we still find a way to say, ‘Yeah, but they played their national anthem.’
“Well, you know what? I’ll play the anthem if they want, for what they’re doing, at every show.”
Despite Hearn’s praise for Alalshikh’s help, Matchroom made Carl Froch vs. George Groves in front of 80,000 at Wembley and Joshua vs. Wladimir Klitschko with a post-war record of 90,000 at the time. Warren himself put on Tyson Fury vs. Dillian Whyte with 94,000 at Wembley in attendance just a few years ago.
So, on the face of it, British boxing promoters can make those kinds of events if they work together. But until Alalshikh came along and waved his checkbook, Hearn and Warren despised each other.
Even without the hatchet buried, both rivals were still putting on similar mega-fights at the National Stadium. The only differences were the purses the fighters obtained under Alalshikh and, obviously, the promoter’s cut—among other things.
Read all articles and exclusive interviews by Phil Jay. Learn more about the author, experienced boxing writer, and World Boxing News Editor since 2010. Follow on Twitter @PhilJWBN.
