Eddie Hearn is willing to hold off on seeking an agreement with Deontay Wilder for April as long as some solid dialogue is re-opened.
The Matchroom boss has cut a frustrated figure recently. Wilder and his team downed tools from negotiations until after a December 1 clash with Tyson Fury.
Hearn was first of all pushing for a deal to be reached as both sides haggled over a split. As Shelly Finkel informed WBN talks could happen in October, further comments in the media pushed them apart again.
Finkel then stated he won’t answers calls or emails until after the Fury fight, leading to Hearn threatening to walk away completely.
Now it seems Hearn (Pictured below by Mark Robinson) will not seek signatures for April 13 until after Pay-Per-View numbers are crunched for Wilder v Fury.
“I think they’ll want to see how the numbers do,” Hearn told Sky Sports.
“It probably makes it harder (if numbers are low), because we look at it and say – ‘Look, you’re not a draw’.
“I actually want it to do better than do worse, because if it does bad, he has zero bargaining position. If it does well, then we’ll accept that.
“If it does over a million buys, then we will have to look closer to 50-50.”
STANDBY
On the nature of discussions, Hearn is now willing to take his foot off the gas.
“I just want to make progress. Just have a chat. I don’t expect them to sign the fight before December 1.
“But the problem is, if we start after December, we’ve got to go through a process that we could be going through now. A bit frustrating,” he added.
There’s no doubt Wilder wants Joshua after offering $50m to prove his seriousness over the summer. But confirming with Joshua would be disrespectful as Fury has a rematch clause if he wins.
Another fight is possible even if Wilder defeats Fury in a closely-fought contest. Wembley Stadium is already earmarked as a possible venue.
This means Hearn needs his own back up option for Joshua and where Dillian Whyte comes in for what will be his second bite of the Joshua cherry next year.
