Eddie Hearn has aired his views on the current situation regarding American heavyweight Deontay Wilder and his future in the sport.
Firstly, in an interview with Sirius XM, now available on the Sirius XM App, Hearn covered many topics, including Wilder.
The Matchroom boss called Wilder ‘deluded’ for his accusations against Tyson Fury and conducted since losing.
Hearn also talked about Dana White’s entry into boxing and Mike Tyson’s comeback at 54.
Talking points of the interview:
– I certainly have no interest in watching a Hall of Famer/great like Oscar de la Hoya come back as 20% of what they once were.
– I look at Mike Tyson and wonder how he didn’t leave the sport with more money than you need for multiple lifetimes.
– Boxing is out of the top-10 in terms of popularity in America – it’s unfortunate. Plus, the separate mentalities of states doesn’t help. We have a lot of unfinished business as a company in America.
– The DAZN Global initiative is so exciting for the sport. It’s the global home for boxing – never been done before.
DEONTAY WILDER
– It’s easy to kick a man when he’s down – Deontay Wilder is down.
– The heat from Wilder really started in 2018. We tried to make that fight happen, but his team played a great game and raised his profile off of us.
– Deontay is a deluded man. Someone needs to sit him down and give him a blunt talking-to. It’s spiraling out of control and getting worse and worse.
– Will he ever fight again? He won’t want to fight for less than eight figures … I wouldn’t be surprised if you never see him fight again.
– I thought Devin Haney’s performance was exceptional. To do what he did to Gamboa was remarkable. If Gamboa marched forward, Devin would have KO’d him.
– It’s no secret that I respect what Dana White and the UFC does in terms of content. I want to create the “UFC of boxing.”
– The perception is that every MMA fighter wants to sign with the UFC, even current Bellator fighters. They’ve built that perception.
– I think Dana may get frustrated upon entering boxing with Zuffa Boxing. I can’t imagine his patience will last long.
– Whatever you think of him, his entrance into boxing is good for us.
